The
Shire has not changed,
but I have.
I was once afraid
to
set foot outside my homeland,
not wanting to confront possible
dangers
of the outside world,
seeking only what was
familiar
and comforting...
But it did not turn out that way.
By
choice, I left my home and my life,
left everything behind
to
aid my beloved friends on a treacherous quest.
How long ago it
all seemed.
I shake my head
as I remember my frequent errors.
Fool
of a Took!
Gandalf would say,
reprimanding me with hard eyes
and a
granite voice.
Perhaps I was
foolish;
foolish to think I could take on such a task,
to
believe my friends needed me,
to wish that I could become more
than what I was...
Memories
of the PalantÃr
still cause my hands to burn,
igniting fire
beneath my skin,
my head becoming hot as flame
as I looked
into his
face!
I still remember, but try to forget.
Never in my life
have I known such fear...
Fear as terrifying as
being
separated from Merry.
Would we ever see each other again?
I
don't know...I don't know what's going to happen.
I
watched Edoras,
calling out his name
until the city
disappeared.
Alone...
Why was I alone? How could I go on?
What would become of me now?
Guard
of the Citadel;
a soldier of Gondor,
a position I never
expected to hold.
No one would have
recognized me;
would
they have even taken me seriously?
The idea of being in battle
fills me with cold dread,
but I choose to honor my pledge.
I
made a promise.
Minas Tirith overrun by evil...
I could not
believe the
destruction and chaos all around.
I looked on as
Gandalf
defended me with a swift blade
and determination,
while I stood by shaking with fright.
He had ordered me to
go,
said it was too much for me.
He was right;
I had no
chance of surviving this,
a fool had no chance...
No.
Not
a fool, not anymore.
I was to serve a purpose
and I would
fulfill it.
Time for the Shire-folk
to
prove their worth;
time to repay my debt
to the wizard who had
sacrificed much.
With a new sense of responsibility
my blade
impaled an enemy,
Gandalf staring at me
with the barest hint
of pride in his eyes...
I cradled Merry's wounded form
in
my arms,
vowing to care for him,
realizing for the first time
that I had nearly lost my best friend.
Death is part of life
and we both nearly crossed that line.
We had survived, and I
had grown in spirit.
Gone was the Peregrin Took
who left the
Shire;
no longer was I the young fool.
Journeys across
unfamiliar lands
and within my soul
have revealed the
potential
I truly possess.
For thirteen months
I faced
pain and suffering,
uncertainty, doubt,
separation from our
fellowship,
creatures that had existed only in nightmares...
And
I would do it all over again for the sake of my friends.
I
sigh calmly as the sun descends
to the green horizon, letting the
quiet settle
deep in my heart.
I have never seen a more
beautiful sunset.
The Shire has not changed,
but I have.
I was once afraid
to set foot outside my homeland,
but I am stronger
because
I did.
The world has forever changed for me.