By Benjamin Redzovic
The Tribute WTC Visitor Center is holding its second annual poetry reading on Sunday April 27 at 120 Liberty St. in recognition of the National Poetry Month. Poet Angelo Verga, who will host the reading, was part of the selection panel that selected 34 out of the 151 submitted poems, and he knew exactly what he was looking for. “It’s a question of what sounds free, honest and direct,” Verga said, “what resonates, what hits the heart.”
The majority of the poems came from New York City students and Lower Manhattan residents. The free reading will start at 3:30 p.m. and reservations can be made by calling the visitor center at (212) 393-9160 ext. 138. Here is a sample:
O Dios
(Tribute Center Docent)
“My husband had taken ill,” she said.
“He was home watching television and
we saw it all happen across the world
in Argentina.”
“O, Dios,” he said. “Oh, God.”
“Those were the first words
he had spoken
in three years,” she continued.
“And the last words he said
until the day he died.”
“Life since 9/11”
(6th grade student)
I was only five when blue skies turned to gray I do not recall too much of that day I can only go by what my parents say
“Our lives have now changed”, I heard my mom say.
My dad said, “Someone has taken our freedom away!”
I wasn’t so sure what they meant by those words Then we went on a trip that when I Understood
We went to see the Liberty Bell
That great sign of freedom with a story to tell On a long line we waited through x-rays and check points “Sorry we much check your bags, no medal or alarms will sound off”
That great symbol of freedom with a crack on its side Now not as free as it was once meant to be When I finally saw it I just had to sigh This can’t be what our forefathers had in their minds
I will wait in those lines I really don’t mind To see all the symbols of freedom that I can find My parents were wrong when I heard them say, “Someone has taken our freedom away”
Empire State Building after 9/11
We brought you back
like a retired
politician,
tapping
into old glories
because
we didn’t know
what else
to do.
All eyes on you
again,
over-shadowed
sister,
resurrected
from ashes
that are
not
yours.
September 11th 2001
Do you remember?
Were you there?
What has changed?
Hatred.
War.
Violence.
Never ending conflicts.
What has changed?
Buildings falling,
Lives ending,
Feelings crushed,
Hearts broken,
Death.
What has changed?
Change is new,
Change is old,
Everything must
Change.
What has changed?
Switches,
Adjustments,
Transitions,
New rules,
Replacements.
What has changed?
Iraq is bombed
Daily and frequently,
America is grieving,
The world is shocked,
The people are scared,
What has changed?
Buildings rebuilt,
Terrorists perishing,
Governments born,
People coping,
Hope is growing.
Hoping
For a better tomorrow,
A better life,
A better world,
A safer world,
A stronger people,
A new day.
What has changed?
Only one answer
Exists.
Everything has changed.
“Some Say”
(Visitor Response Card left at the Tribute Center)
Some say that we should remember forever
Some say we should move on
I say we do both
And remember the dead
In our hearts, our minds, our souls,
But we also must remember,
Not to live in the past,
Or we may forget those who survived,
And that would add another death,
The death of a spirit.
9-11
(5th grade student in Staten Island)
More than 3600 souls went to heaven
For the madness and illness of a few on the run
A religion that praises peace will come undone
On that day a nation cried
For the thousands of souls that died
A world awoke
In one voice they spoke
Terrorism will never stand
In a world united hand in hand
