Upon a boat
one can survey the
merging of memories
projected upon the backdrop
of a skyline marred by fear

One can
spot the wall
opening up
as it separates
into a gateway
for the healing
of broken hearts

Knowing that it’s been
two decades
since we kept remembering
where we were that day
when lower Manhattan
became a metropolis of ghosts

Knowing that it’s been
two decades
since we remembered
in spite of our collective trauma
beckoning us to forget

Knowing that it’s been
two decades
since the monumental
loss of a monument

Sensations of sirens
and stenches
of sorrow
under the sunset
no longer feel
like such distant memories

This landmark
is a reminder
of how the spirit realm
formed a vortex
in which our souls
connected
within the
phantom platoon
commemorated
every September

Positioned at the helm
illuminated by two
luminescent monoliths
in place of stone

Standing stoically
as the heartbreak
of a nation
fixates upon a
landmark of light

-Jacob Moses