I Cannot Fathom...Ground Zero (poem) by Zahala San Simone on AuthorsDen

I Cannot Fathom...Ground Zero
by Zahala San Simone → (All Poetry by Zahala San Simone)
Rated "PG" by the Author.

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I cannot fathom Cannot see My eyes close in pain As I remember… I was in Chicago Working from home Suddenly my conference line died And I couldn’t reconnect. September 11, 2001. I couldn’t reconnect. And I was annoyed about it. Started making calls locally But couldn’t reach a soul for 20 minutes… Twenty minutes. I was worried that my coworkers Would think I was a slacker… A slacker because At that time Working from home was relatively new for my company Relatively new, And highly controversial… We had to work even harder Than we did in the office To prove our productivity to those Too stubborn Too conservative And too ‘old school’ To see that alternate work arrangements Are a fabulous Company benefit. Company benefit… I was annoyed. But, I finally reached a co-worker who told me, ‘Turn on the television Something’s happened at the World Trade Center.’ Something’s happened at the World Trade Center? So what did this have to do with my conference call? Maybe we’d been routed through New York, instead of Chicago… Routed through New York instead of Chicago… That was good news Because I realized that the souls would know the conference line was down-- Not my fault-- My work from home privilege was still safe That day. That day I turned on my television And my eyes saw the sight But my soul couldn’t reconcile… My soul couldn’t reconcile The planes The strike The building on fire. An accident? No. A terrorist attack. A terrorist attack? Yes, First one tower, Then the second. One collapses, Then two. How many people were in there? How many people were in... The Pentagon’s been hit, CNN said. It’s burning too. It’s burning too-- A plane in Pennsylvania. It crashed before it hit the White House or the Capitol. Hit the White House or the Capitol? Yes, and The President is airborne. The President is airborne, While we are on the ground? Are there more planes coming? Are we at war? Are we at war… I thought of my son A few blocks away in school Should I get him? Should I get him? I didn’t know and no one could tell me for sure. What do we do? None of the souls knew. We just watched and listened. Listened and prayed for The heroes of New York Bravely saving their comrades Or mourning their demise… Five years later I remember every moment of that morning… The sadness, The disbelief The tears… My realization that we walk by the faith Stored in our souls, And not by sight… No, we shall not walk by sight when We can’t fathom Cannot see Our eyes close in horror When we see the images of Ground Zero replayed… And the terrorists smile.

Reviewed by Victor Buhagiar (Reader)

Reviewed on September 10, 2006

They will not be forgotten, and I think that the terrorists are not smiling much. They promised something big and were found out. Be vigilant. Victor

Reviewed by Nordette Adams

A moving remembrance of that day in verse. We should not ever forget, but neither must we let our pain blind or paralyze us. Strong point at the end. Brings to mind blinding rage, a state in which people may act unwisely. ~~Nordette