Ten years ago and half again
History witnessed…
Oh never mind
We find a generation almost grown since then
Remembers nothing of that September morning
The arcing flames reduced to ash
The rubble swept away
Consigned to history’s trash bin
Gone the faces of course
Replaced by faded shadows
Dancing on the edge of memory just out of reach
As if they have something left to teach us
No idea what that would be
No matter
It seems those pesky recollections
Now reside in restless dreams
Naturally the symbolism of the dead
Resilience, courage, love
Instead became a propaganda tool
A tug of war between a changing cast of fools
Which means the deaths are meant to represent
A single moment’s goodwill
Quickly spent
Out of pocket out of mind
God and Christ and Universe
It hurts!
Not his absence
That’s a curse I’ve learned to live with
What makes my heart ache fills a bigger screen
The mean and bilious rancor we’ve allowed to spread
The fear-backed hate
The endless dread
What purpose served
What noble end
And don’t pretend purveyors of division
Will offer us protection
It’s all misdirection
Built for glory
Meant for gain
How dare they commandeer our pain to suit their pleasure
We know what’s gone
We won’t forget
And neither will we let the legacy of all those deaths be hate
That’s not the fate we will to future selves
The past as prologue
But what will be does not need match what has been
We hold our tattered hope up to the light
We do not let the ugly win
