.
.
You who worry with travel plans,
read again the place in the Qur'an
where Moses is taking the Jewish nation out of slavery.
.
You so frantic to have more money,
recall what they abandoned to wander in the wilderness.
.
You who feel hurt by some neglect,
remember the pavilions and houses they left behind.
.
You that lead the community through difficulties,
read about the abundant fountains
they walked away from to have freedom.
.
You who dress in clothes that appear to have elegant meaning,
you with so much charm,
remember how your face will decay to dirt.
.
You with lots of property, read again,
They left their gardens and the quietly running streams.
.
You who smile a funerals going by,
you that love language, measure the wind in stanzas,
and recall the exodus, the wandering forty-year sacrifice.
Remember Egypt.
.
~ Rumi
from The Big Red Book
translations by Coleman Barks
.
