My City, New York, September 11, 2001

by Dhanwant Kaur Khalsa

When the world breaks nothing makes me shake
‘cause I know God is holding my life in His hands
If we all have to suffer may it be very quick
My city is a buffer for someone else’s gig
And the world is breaking with cries and laughter
My city’s core is shaking from our new disaster.
And I wonder how blind we were all meant to be
This has angered our minds so we refuse to see

If I could only explain my love for thee
Every park, every corner, every piece of debris
Every watchtower or billboard
They are pieces of me
Every street I turn to I discover anew
Different world, which is part of you
You just silently hold every dream, every fall
It is not just a name on the map, New York.

You’re my second home I have come to love
I will miss you dearly if you should be gone
I don’t hate the people who want you dead
I just pity the cripple who is sick in the head

Why did God give some, clear piece of mind
Why did God make others, totally blind?
On the clear day many people were killed
Our hate will destroy everything we have built

I flip the channels on my TV
Everyone is speculating of what will be
While the mystery lies under pile of debris
We all silently hate the enemy

When I sit in my office up, up, up in the sky
Counting spots of coffee on the work I have done
I am so caught up in my daily routine
Even if I am on top I forget to see
When I raise my eyes after long day’s duty
Only then I realize my city’s beauty

I think of my office like a jail’s cell
I feel I have to run from here because I am in hell
I do not recognize my wonderful luck
I always consider myself to be stuck
Hardly noticing all the structures below
How the sun is throwing its wonderful glow

I do not wish to end this rhyme on bad note
I will run to the street and I won’t grab my coat
I just want to blend in with this City’s spirit
For the first time I see so many beautiful people
Everyone is quiet they are hurting within
Everyone is family, everyone is kin
First time I see people’s eyes on the train
Some don’t have anger it is mostly just pain

Something tells me I should be calm
My life is held in the hands of God
I hope the lost souls will find their way
So my City will start its brand new day

18-Sep-2013

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Comments on this Poem

Thank you for your kind words. I am glad I could share.

Dhanwant Khalsa
19-Sep-2013 09:42 AM

Very poignant! Very touching! Your dedication to the lost Souls" of 9/11 has moved me no end Dhanwant Kaurji. Thanks for sharing esp. these lines:

Everyone is quiet they are hurting within
Everyone is family, everyone is kin
First time I see people’s eyes on the train
Some don’t have anger it is mostly just pain

Padmaja Iyengar
19-Sep-2013 00:00 AM