Berry

She was an Arctic tern—
a species that follows the longest migration on Earth,
from polar night to polar night.

She did not belong to any one place.

She crossed oceans without leaving a trace,
followed magnetic lines no map could record,
and returned each year without being told where “home” was.

To the children,
she was not a symbol.
She was timing.

When she appeared,
it meant the route was still open.
When she vanished,
it meant the world had already moved on.

她是一隻北極燕鷗——
地球上遷徙距離最長的物種之一，
一生往返於極夜與極夜之間。

她不屬於任何一個地方。

她跨越海洋，不留下痕跡，
沿著地圖無法標記的磁力線飛行，
年復一年歸返，卻從不需要被告知「家」在哪裡。

對孩子而言，
她不是象徵。
她是時間本身。

她出現時，
代表路仍然開著；
她離開時，
世界早已向前。