Autobiography

This is one of my favorite poems and I just discovered that Portia Nelson (the poet) was an actress who played one of the nuns in The Sound of Music (one of my all time favorite movies). I just had to share.

Autobiography in Five Short Chapters
One
I walk down the street. There is a deep hole in the sidewalk.
I fall in. I am lost . . . I am helpless. It is not my fault.
It takes forever to find a way out.
Two
I walk down the same street. There is a deep hole in the sidewalk.
I pretend I do not see it. I fall in again.
I cannot believe I am in the same place, but it is not my fault.
It still takes a long time to get out.
Three
I walk down the same street. There is a deep hole in the sidewalk.
I see it is there. I still fall in . . . it is a habit.
My eyes are open. I know where I am. It is my fault.
I get out immediately.
Four
I walk down the same street. There is a deep hole in the sidewalk.
I walk around it.
Five
I walk down another street.

Portia Nelson, There’s a Hole in My Sidewalk: The Romance of Self-Discovery (Copyright 1993, Beyond Words Publishing, Hillsboro, Oregon.)

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