The Rider Poem by Naomi Shihab Nye

The Rider

Rating: 3.4


A boy told me
if he roller-skated fast enough
his loneliness couldn't catch up to him,

the best reason I ever heard
for trying to be a champion.

What I wonder tonight
pedaling hard down King William Street
is if it translates to bicycles.

A victory! To leave your loneliness
panting behind you on some street corner
while you float free into a cloud of sudden azaleas,
pink petals that have never felt loneliness,
no matter how slowly they fell.

COMMENTS OF THE POEM
hello 17 March 2018

great I was only gonna put great but it said 20 characters

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Chant 22 March 2018

what inspired you to get into roller skating I wanted to escape my loneliness

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Adeeb Alfateh 19 July 2019

A victory! To leave your loneliness panting behind you on some street corner while you float free into a cloud of sudden azaleas, great write great 10++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++

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Bernard F. Asuncion 19 July 2019

A wonderful poem by Naomi Shihab Nye...

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Mahtab Bangalee 19 July 2019

A victory! To leave your loneliness panting behind you on some street corner../// a beautiful poem shared

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Glen Kappy 19 July 2019

this is a nice example of how to turn a personal vignette into a charming poem. -gk

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Ruta Mohapatra 19 July 2019

A little sad but a great composition!

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Edward Kofi Louis 19 July 2019

Trying to be a Champion! ! ! ! ! Thanks for sharing this poem with us.

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Rose Marie Juan-austin 19 July 2019

A wonderful poem imbued with a meaningful message. Yes, to leave loneliness is a victory.

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Anil Kumar Panda 19 July 2019

'pink petals that have never felt loneliness, no matter how slowly they fell. '... is so beautiful. A nice poem indeed.

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Naomi Shihab Nye

Naomi Shihab Nye

St. Louis, Missouri
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