| Silence
Silence, what I heard on Sept. 11 and the day
to follow.
Silence. The unbearable sound that can rip a
heart to shreds. What you hear
just a before an orchestra starts playing, or a in the few seconds
before
the next song on a c.d. I heard silence a lot on this day, whether
in a
class that listened to a radio news report, and even after being
switched
off no one could come up with the strength, or even the words to
talk; or
watching the news after school that day...
Buzz. The sound of a bad radio connection in
the basement of the school. 22
students and one teacher crowded around a small, one speaker Sony
sound
system. All staring blankly into space, half of them listening to
an NPR
radio broadcaster listing facts of the crash. The other half running
over
questions in their mind: "Why did this happen?" "Who
would do this?" "Is my
family okay"...
Click-Click. The sound of an air-conditioner
while we had time to reflect at
the end of the day...
Ruffle. The sound of clothes as students move
to a new position...
Ring. The sound of the 1st bell releasing us to out first period
class...
Silence. Silence in classrooms, silence in the hallways. Silence
on the
faces of High School students asking "What's going to happen
next?"...
Silence. You walk outside, there are no planes. Marching band is
outside, no
lights ahead...
The world is silent, waiting, waiting...
Silence. Buzz. Click. Ruffle. Ring. SILENCE...Silence...silence...
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