Hope in What Remains

by Belinda Munoz on September 11, 2011

4983277978_c6c1eba29a
Crumbled towers of forever altered landscape
seen and felt in conspicuous absence
as we recall the horror of the tactics of terror.
Caught in a dark cloud,
questions of peace and humanity swirl
half-lived, somewhat asked, mostly ungrasped.

The honor of lives lost —
a decade of remembering, a river of grief
– stands tall on fortified ground
of courage regained, of strength found, of hope born.
From the rubble of what remains,
death’s grip affirms life.

Linking up with dVerse Poets Pub, In Memoriam

image

{ 14 comments… read them below or add one }

1 Claudia September 11, 2011 at 4:53 am

…half-lived, somewhat asked, mostly ungrasped….i fell in love with this line as it says so much…wonderfully and sensitively penned belinda

Reply

2 Heaven September 11, 2011 at 5:25 am

I like these lines:

From the rubble of what remains,
death’s grip affirms life.

Thanks for sharing this ~

Reply

3 ayala September 11, 2011 at 6:57 am

Half lived….a river of grief…..and hope is what remains… Beautiful .

Reply

4 Janaki Nagaraj September 11, 2011 at 7:10 am

Last two lines are a clincher…..loved the poem.

Reply

5 brian September 11, 2011 at 8:23 am

nice…i would like to think after 10 years the river of grief may turn to waters of healing in the hearts of all….

Reply

6 California Ink in Motion September 11, 2011 at 10:49 am

Caught in a dark cloud,
questions of peace and humanity swirl
half-lived, somewhat asked, mostly ungrasped.

These lines were perfect! Very much felt this poem.

Reply

7 hedgewitch September 11, 2011 at 11:03 am

This poem definitely affirms your subtitle, choosing positivity, not always an easy choice. I esp like the ideas in your first stanza, of “questions of peace and humanity swirl/half-lived, somewhat asked, mostly ungrasped..” They suit the subject well.

Reply

8 Victoria September 11, 2011 at 11:03 am

Thoughtful meditation to consider today. Thank you.

Reply

9 Mark Kerstetter September 11, 2011 at 12:53 pm

These words struck me in particular:

“half-lived, somewhat asked, mostly ungrasped”

Any philosopher worthy of the name knows that the art of asking questions is where it’s at. You can never get anywhere if you don’t ask the right questions. I don’t say this to set myself up, and certainly not to pretend I know the right questions. But if today means anything at all, it is about thinking on these things. Your poem helps prod us in this direction. Thank you for it.

Reply

10 Ann LeFlore September 11, 2011 at 2:45 pm

Yes there is always hope in what remains behind and hope that this day will make everyone come together in peace and stop all this violence around the world.
http://gatelesspassage.com/2011/09/11/the-sorrow-of-our-times/

Reply

11 Marci | Liberating Choices September 11, 2011 at 6:28 pm

Beautifully said. Courage beyond my comprehension!

Reply

12 Cathy September 11, 2011 at 9:00 pm

With the knowledge and strength that we can endure more than we ever envisioned or ever wanted to.

Reply

13 Rudri Bhatt Patel @ Being Rudri September 12, 2011 at 11:40 am

Beautiful Belinda. Those last two lines are powerful.

Reply

14 Madeleine Begun Kane September 19, 2011 at 1:01 am

Beautifully written!

Reply

Leave a Comment

Previous post: The Tricky Business of Dressing a Wound

Next post: Validating Intuition