A Father's Torment

A baby cries in her mother's arms
Breathing the first breaths of life.
An innocent, mere hours old
Unaware of the cruelty of men.

The baby's mother weeps
As she holds her child close
Feeling the child's heart beating.
The mother is at peace.

The father waits outside
Watching terror unfold on TV.
A plane crashes into a building
And the sky rains fire.

As he watches the chaos unfold,
And fights back the tears of rage and sadness,
He listens to the words being said,
Words that bring little comfort to him.

"We are the shepherds," the newsman said.
"Tending and keeping peace amongst the flock.
We are the pillars of democracy,
Lighting the way for others to follow.

And now we watch helplessly
As our very homes are threatened from without.
Our families and our very way of life
Were jeopardized today with a single act of terrorism.

I stood here watching in shock
As the Twin Towers fell.
Glass on fire and reduced to ash,
The destruction is complete.

We are the shepherds of peace,
And now that peace has been threatened.
And as I stand here before you,
There is but one thing I can do.

Pray for the souls of those who've lost their lives.
Pray for the families of those who are gone.
Pray for the rescuers that they be in time
Pray for us all that we not go down the road that leads to war."

The father turned away from the TV.
Lost in his sorrows, he turned to his wife and child
Taking some small comfort in the sight
Of the baby he helped bring into the world.

"But do I have the right?" he asked himself.
"Do I have the right to bring a child into this world
With all the hate and the pain and the destruction?
How can such a world tolerate things like this?"

The baby falls asleep in her mother's arms
Basking in the newborn glow of life.
An innocent, mere hours old
Unaware of how cruel the world can be.

--Rick Bentsen
September 11, 2001

I was deeply moved by the events of September 11th. I sat at my computer, transfixed as the events unfolded. My girlfriend and I looked at each other in total disbelief. As many of my fellow authors have done, I felt I had to put my thoughts into words.....