Vapor Trails

Vapor Trails

Driving across the Nebraska prairie
on this most introspective day,
September 11, 2011, I saw

vapor trails

criss-crossing the sky,
jets destined for locations
far, far away from here.

I thought back to that
most tragic day,
September 11, 2001 and remembered the lack of

vapor trails

in the sky as all
civilian flights were grounded,
people stranded from their destinations

far, far from where they were.
Somehow it startled me to see them,
as if the planes themselves were

disregarding the reverence
of this day.  Or maybe the travelers
themselves were to blame for

daring to travel and
not remember.  But then I
realized that not to travel, not to blaze those

vapor trails

would be the worst offense.
We will never forget,
but we will never surrender, either.

Copyright Steven Clark 2011




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