Dust III (Infinity)

stubs of the buildings continue to burn into infinity

disbelief, signified first by trembling
sight of bodies helplessly tumbling out,
some of them

Every sound was cause
plane appeared overhead.
Was another one coming?

No, lives, but they didn’t know where to east, west?
Stay outside, go indoors?
People hid
towers,
the most horrid thought
several panic-stricken hours
yesterday morning, people

 in the unthinkable.

”I don’t know what look like, but it’s got film composer, was having breakfast at a small restaurant on West Broadway. He heard, was work in a downtown building. He heard a jet thought it was too low. into the north face of engine trouble. He didn’t try to maneuver. the sides of the buildings, and at first it wasn’t clear what they were. of people doing tai chi merely looking out. were standing her dress was billowing out. towers, people felt it without  As the doors opened, she know it, but the first plane had just hit several to our suite, she said. was so much debris in the air she couldn’t breathe. Port Authority rescuers finally steered her to investment banking firm, was sitting before his computer terminal of others, began their descent. I got to to get out now.”

the entourage was stuck
were working the hall
down the steps.’
we got out.

Other people several blocks away.
She hurried and found her daughter.
”I just grabbed her up.

People lost their keys,
”It was horrible. I felt sirens blaring, sped downtown, people stood and gaped was to come.

Reason dictated caution, to get out but she was overcome with

Everyone had left.
Even so, worker crouched down next to an inhaler and hugged her.

Some to drop his son off and people looked up.
Another one,
they thought.
” to list in one direction and them began to floor exploded out for about floors, before the cloud obscured it all.”

 air rained white ash and plaster dust, coating people

 had just gotten out thought it was a marketing face of death.

 Michael couldn’t do anything to get out of there.’ and it began to dissipate into the air.

empty space where be.
 Where did it go?
onlookers stayed put, frozen in and watched the smoke dissolve.
People cried at what they saw:
 ”The dust was about the doors and turned on the radios, hear what was happening.

The plane at the Pentagon, the plane in Pittsburgh. Manhattan Hospital to donate blood.

Lines
pay phones,
but many didn’t work.

They can’t hurt us in afternoon,
 hundreds of rescue workers remained outside
 stubs of the buildings continue to burn into infinity.

Dust II (Earthquake)
(after an article in The New York Times)

destructive energy,
the building collapses were slightly larger shook the East Side of 17,
scientists said yesterday.
was pretty good sized,’
seismologist at the Lamont- Doherty Earth Observatory at Columbia began to jump.
j just cried,’
monitoring quakes in the Northeast,
knowing that the sensors
t tower collapses were slightly larger in destructive energy.

(The collapse hours later of 7 World Trade Center, d did not register

 Dust I (WTC)
after an article in the New York Daily News

any and way,
receive her

her urn,
81st
Trade
Center,
first hope

empty contents
Center husband,
yesterday yesterday.

It’s attack.

urns and flag.

Family earth
Center earth.

possibility the
World
but seen
first hope”

Trade
World empty towers.

urn,
as tears.

of and the they
 

Center seen urn part place
Center,
I it he’s body,
tears.

attack.

containing yesterday.

Following clutching nothing.

small
Family most remains something,
members
Trade
Center attacks.

any relatives of the place where he died helping others.
accepted her urn, but has not accepted the possibility
“That way, his love will keep on growing and I can talk to him every day.”

clutching the urns
“It’s something”

The 5-inch-tall urns, made of polished cherry
mahogany, were each etched with the date 09-11-01. Each urn
was contained in a blue velvet drawstring bag
 and was last
seen helping evacuate people from the World Trade Center.

It makes me feel good because this is part of the missing and dead
at the World Trade Center site
 and a folded American flag.

they contained far more than earth.
“It’s something,”

another flag has been flying since

accepted her urn,
but has not accepted

the urn

just in case
she never sees
her husband again.

she will take the flag given
hang it

on the 81st floor
of 1 World Trade Center,
but was also last seen helping evacuate people from the twin towers.

his love will keep on growing and I can talk to him every day,
said she would empty the contents
burst into tears.

the porch light hasn’t gone out