nmah3672.xml

nmah3672.xml

born-digital

story

yes

no

2002-09-11

I would like to share a poem that I wrote proceeding the events of 9/11. Following the attacks, I became drawn to reading The New York Times' Portraits of Grief everyday. The following poem was inspired by the portraits of grief and is an emotional response to the tragedy of so many lives lost.


Elegy

Layers of steel
Layers of death
Mangled material and layers of dust.

Lifetimes thousands ended
We read their stories everyday
Portraits of grief with our morning coffee
I think about their lives, each one
A motion picture stopped in the middle of a scene.

What was once energy
Is now a pile of debris
Smiles and souls, hearts and laughter
Are silenced forever.

The strangers who perished now we know them
They are in our heart and
We are crying for humankind.





11.13.01