~New Orleans~

Tragedy strikes
In so many forms of destruction.
Lives are forever altered
Without any call to attention.
Pain and fear
Mask the faces of the affected.
Forlorn and solemn
The surviving slowly treads
Along undesirable paths
That were once calm.
Bittersweet recollections
Of loves lost, retreat.
To the broken hearts
Memories are left to be passed on.
Slowly, lives are rebuilt…
One by painful one.
Resolve and hope
Keep faith up and rising.
Though never forgotten,
Decreased is the unbearable sting.

January 2005