ART & POETRY BY PAUL & KATHY BOECHER

I wrote the following poem six years ago, but the memory of that day seems melted from history as did the steel on that fateful day of September 11, 2001. Another attack occurred on September 11, 2012. I shouldn’t be amazed, but I am. How soon we forget the attacks against our nation and the lives lost because of them. I was gone on a brief vacation, but I couldn’t forget the day when the calendar changed.

Those dates along with the attack on Pearl Harbor should be etched in our memories for eternity. We seem to be trying to erase history these days, but we can’t eliminate them from our minds. Patriotism was evident. People worked together to mend the destruction and go after the enemy. Flags flew everywhere. In fact they ran out of them in the local stores. Today they burn flags in protest and defund those heroes that protect them.

My prayer is that this horrific COVID19 of the present time, will reignite a call to defending our country, our constitution, our people by once more becoming united as we did on those days. We must never forget.

Hidden in the ashes, trampled by the steel
Lay the sons and daughters of that day.
In the years that follow, our hearts may never heal.
We mourn their loss – We try to deal – We turn to God and pray.

Freedom was taken, terror stole our soul,
But America was built for more than this
Strong hearts united, with a mutual goal,
Rebuilding, renewing, restoring the mess.

This day is not forgotten. It’s seared upon our souls.
We put our faith in God’s eternal care.
We trust in His salvation, we know he mends the holes
That come from the destruction in the air.

Our hearts must stay united, no matter how we feel.
We look beyond the prejudice and fears.
Our only hope is Jesus. He is the one who heals.
He erases all our sorrows and wipes away our tears.