A reflective poem about breaking free from work and rediscovering identity beyond job titles, chasing meaning instead of promotions, and choosing freedom over routine.
I deposited my life
into the vault of the employer bank,
sophomore year.
A life accrued,
titles, degrees,
monthly awards, yearly plaques,
a carousel of jobs,
a library of effort.
Arrogance, the fuel
that quietly burned my career to ash.
No pre-dawn alarm.
No snail’s jog through gridlock.
No cooler talk.
No carrot to chase.
A vagabond now,
wandering through shadows of former self,
searching for a door
in light’s direction.
Sometimes, freedom begins the moment we stop mistaking our job for our worth, a quiet rebellion of rediscovering who we are beyond the paycheck.
