I solemnly slip the staff
Of our country's flag
Into the bracket
Nailed to the post
Of our front porch;
It is another beautiful day,
The sky is clear
And autumn blue,
And the sun bathes us
With warm rays of hope.
The breeze lifts the fabric,
Wafting it gently,
Forlornly,
As if it, too,
Feels the sorrow
Of the American people.
Nine years have passed
Since that gloriously
Horrific day,
A day
When the savage cowardice
Of a few
Was met 
By the uncommon valor
Of the many.
I mourn the loss
Of those many:
The men,
The women,
The Christian,
The Muslim,
The Jew,
The people of the planet
Represented
By the Towers
That bore the name,
World Trade Center.