Nine Twelve featuring Jennifer Thomas

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Remember 9/12?
the day after the crashes 
the aftermath when
the skies were quiet 
the only tweets came from birds that were confused by the reverence 
they looked on as we held hands at vigils of remembrance 
we were scared but the fellowship vanquished the fears
because when the candlelight lit up the tears  
we saw our own reflections in each other’s faces 
and we mourned, together
the only races were those to get help for someone that needed it  
someone we probably didn’t even know
people said hi to each other, and smiled
just walking down the street
all religions came together to pray
the non-religious came together – to pray

tales of heroes started to leak into our collective conscience
like flight 93
when that plan was hatched  
there was no time for Facebook flaming because there were already flames
down on the ground
through the ashes and the panic
firemen didn’t stop to ask if 
anyone was republican or democrat
or what kind of life they thought mattered
there was only one kind of life, and it mattered
every burning body deserved to live
every cry for help deserved to be heard
nobody was fixated on reposting or commenting on fake news
because they were asphyxiated
breathless 

and what, a decade and a half it’s been
here we are, gasping again
the air is black again
it’s like we’ve been attacked again
choking on the smoke in our throats and noses every night
only there are no sirens or yellow coats or firehoses in sight

so what do we do 
standing on the front lines of civil war 2
guns drawn, the skies are violent
we’re desperately trying to ascertain
umbrellas to shelter us from all the acid rain
every direction a maelstrom 
every election is a hail storm
walking softly through a minefield of ballot boxes
and no matter which hole we punch, we’re knocked unconscious 
there’s no stopping the brawls
we’re not even talking anymore 
it’s just a cacophony of cannonballs
never content un…less there’s contention
so much energy to scream we lost our energy to dream
we lost our memories… shortened everything to memes

what happened?
we were the most united as americans
when they hijacked United and American
we were still as different as red and white
but we took the stripes and stood under the stars
told our stories in the moonlight and we discovered the same plot
woven in old glory we saw sisters and brothers made from the same cloth
an eternal fabric 
we don’t need terrorist attacks to remind us of that
because every day someone crashes 
and every day someone can be rescued
someone right next to you
because as we all know, this life can be hell
we’re all just trying to find heaven in it
and there’s a chain of deliverance that only works if we’re linked together in it
if hurt people hurt people, healed people can heal people
that’s the real appeal of people
only as the sum of our parts do we ever really feel equal
and peaceful
we don’t have to be the same, to be one
to find truth in truce
in this mess the only solution we have left
is love, compassion, and union
to cross that line in the sand, grab somebody’s hand
and stand together at the vigil
in remembrance of what it was like to be… human