What becomes of our country,
Of our hopes and of our dreams?
For in this time of unrest,
We are fractured if not broken,
And our vision is skewed
By prejudice of old.

When the buildings fell,
And the planes did not fly,
And we closed our doors to the outside world,
We looked to the homes of our neighbors,
And we feared strangers in our yards.

Petty problems
That we once nurtured,
For a short time,
Passed away.
We were no longer black or white,
Dark or light,
Hispanic, Germanic, or other.
We were simply American,
Loving sisters and brothers.

But once again
Rage rules the day.
How soon we forget
Our heart-wrenching regrets,
And return to our ego-centric view of the world.

Opportunity lost,
May be regained.
But not without vision,
Or love,
Or respect
For our shared struggle.

My brothers and sisters,
I beseech you to know and believe,
That the enemy lies outside of our borders,
But his darkness lies within.

When I look into the mirror,
It is your reflection that I see.
For our divine mission is shared.
And I respect you,
And I worry about you,
And I pray for your comfort.

This is our time.
The time to accept and embrace
What is common to both.
For we are more alike than different,
In our souls and in our dreams,
And we must discipline the darkness within,
For it should not define us.

Concept is not reality,
But if righteous,
It can foster hope.
And so I ask you
To look into my eyes,
Searching for truth,
And you will know
That we are one.