Images – a ten year vigil

…lest we ever forget

 

 

 

Images


•

images

unreal
unfathomable images

the graceful glide
engulfed by the spire
in a roar of golden orange

horribly beautiful

perversely mesmerizing

obscene
devastating images

torrents of humanity
raining down

desperation their only escape

masses of humanity
racing
to outrun the unbelievable

praying
to be delivered from the inconceivable

traumatic images

shrines of free commerce
consumed
by the unbearable weight
of their fragile significance
plummeting to earth
in a cloud of self-destruction

heartbreaking images

screaming
dazed
terrified souls
consumed
by the unbearable weight of the moment

staggering onward
to outdistance the surging roll
of all-engulfing
pulverized aftermath

courageous images

battered
determined
tireless heroes

those who were called
who served unselfishly

some
who gave the ultimate service

haunting images

color
gender
ethnicity
wiped away
from the ashen-grey faces
of the traumatized throngs

now just masks of calamity

all made equal
by horror and grief

one nation
under siege
inconsolable
with tragedy and sorrow
for all

unforgettable images
burned into our hearts

• • •

rob kistner © 9/11/09

 

37 thoughts on “Images – a ten year vigil

  1. nicely done… “lest we forget” is on my mothers stone on her grave….1946….sept 11 also reminds me of Chile on that date and the overthrow of Allende….

  2. I know your country is not mine. But I will never forget this horrible day. Watching stunned on the T.V. and knowing thatit was going to change the world forever.

  3. i could pretty much feel the sweat and grit of that day in this…raining torrents of humans…that is where you caught me…really well written rob…

  4. Well, it was your turn, sir.
    I woke up today and wanted
    to write something worthy of
    the ten year anniversary, and
    lo I find you have already done
    it for me. All I came up with a
    bloated haiku, aptly titled:
    JUST THE IMAGE WILL.
    I love letting you do the
    heavy lifting.

  5. I love your haiku Glenn, and its pure simplicity speaks volumes to the heart.

    This bit of verse I offer here I actually wrote on the occasion of the 8th vigil, on 9/11/2009. I tried in vain to write something I felt more apt for today’s 10th — instead, I decided to reprise this piece, because it speaks so clearly to the horror that still stirs in my heart, and in nightmares from time to time, when remembering that tragedy…

    1. Why should anyone feel under siege Mark, well besides the tragedy of 911, to which I directly referred; we are under siege in the USA 24/7 — from BIG oil, from mindless TV, from soulless advertising, from the parasitical drug companies, from usurious credit card and banking companies, from irresponsible fast food companies, from an army of unscrupulous big business entities, from pollution, from urban overcrowding, from poverty, from manipulative politicians, etc. etc. …

  6. If we were standing face to face, I’d silently salute you for your words, and we’d nod. Knowing the words that were between unseen and unsaid and still known. Thank you for this poem.

  7. Dear Rob; Love how you used the extreme compare and contrast and these lines being etched into my heart as well;

    one nation
    under siege
    inconsolable
    with tragedy and sorrow
    for all

    A fitting memorial filled with dictomy’s pathos.

  8. Yes, tragedy has a way of equalizing, doesn’t it? My favorite part of your work: “color
    gender
    ethnicity
    wiped away
    from the ashen-grey faces
    of the traumatized throngs

    now just masks of calamity

    all made equal
    by horror and grief”

  9. This hits like a combo from Tyson. Just as you begin to recover, another blow reigns down to stun again and again.

    perversely mesmerizing……..indeed, this offering is that.

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