9-11

I was home from work that day. My office was on John Street One block away from the World Trade Center I would often go there at lunchtime To visit the shops To buy fruit at the Green Market To enjoy concerts on the esplanade It was a gathering place During the warm months of the year. And one evening, I was fortunate enough To dine in the Windows on the World Restaurant That offered a spectacular view of the city From the North Tower But this day, I was awakened By a familiar voice on the phone Did you see the news? A plane hit one of the Twin Towers I turned on the television And watched in real time As it all unfolded The mighty buildings Collapsing Into dust and debris Flames and destruction Falling bodies Obliterated bones And death I watched As exhausted firefighters Sat down on the sidewalk and wept I watched As revelers in the streets of Afghanistan Rejoiced at hearing the news I watched From my balcony in Brooklyn Where I once could see the towers But now there was an endless plume of smoke That stretched across the sky All those beautiful, precious lives Gone In the days that followed We New Yorkers treated each other More kindly, more gently For we were all fragile And felt capable of collapse Written September 10, 2009 - for Nathan Leccese's 9-11 Contest