9/11

As a tribute and memorial, I thought I would post here two poems I've posted on my MySpace poetry blog on this theme.

long, long time

rubble, rubble
toil and trouble
jet engines scream
buildings crumble
fire burns

ashes upon ashes
dust upon dust
fire burns

shock and stumble
fire burns

autumn leaves fall
falling
falling
fire burns
fire burns
fire burns

swing me low
sweet cherry
it has been a long, long time since I been home

swing me low
sweet cherry
it has been a long, long time since I been home

what followed

following the shock and the panic
the desperate race to collect the children
and huddle together in what once was
the safety of the home
the black curtain of smoke
rising in the distance
the horror replaying replaying replaying on TV
(but cable only, the networks knocked off the air)

following the exodus, stuck in traffic
the tiny sliver of an island sealed off
like some bad sci fi movie

following the chaos and the confusion
the mad rush to the supermarket
the cries of disbelief and anger
the first of many tears

following the day of madness

came a long moment of silence
a time of stillness
a quiet never known before
in the city of cities
no cars on the road
no planes overhead
no people rushing to work, or play
the ever-present buzz was gone
the white noise replaced by black silence

and all that could be heard
was a whispered accounting:

one brother
one husband
one son

Aftermath.