There Is No Long Distance Now

by Naomi Shihab Nye

Maybe he thinks he can leave his sadness behind him and that is why we keep moving.

Was she selected for her softness, her resonant voice? The official hugger-nurse who stood outside stricken rooms to greet the first people who showed up, alert them they were at a new cliff— surely that must be a weird position to apply for. Professional hard-times hugger.