Through Innocence Eyes
Innocence eyes watch visions of horror
as planes fly into towers and they crumble to the floor.
Parents scrambling children to school terror in their faces, voices
unsteady
Please talk about it to them, we don't know what to say.
Will they be o.k.? is it safe here at school?
I with a steady voice and fear in my heart I assure them
this is the safest place to be! Let's keep a familiar schedule
you'll see.
Innocence eyes watch as I try to explain about
bad people doing bad things to good people, why I do not understand.
Maybe they have broken hearts? Or broken heads that don't understand.
Innocent voices questions are many, where is this place?
Is it near us? why do they fear us? through innocent voices I
hear
them recant what they saw on the news and display it with small
hands formed into
planes that fly in the sky suddenly stopping and then we all start
to cry!
Innocence eyes watch as we go through the drill
Of alphabet sounds, numbers, one, two, three... snack time and
recess. . .
You see the day does continue, unsteady at first but on ward we
trudge.
I look into their innocent eyes and with a heavy heart mourn the
way of life
that was changed for them that morn, a carefree way is replaced
with fear.
Innocence eyes wide and curious, watch as we continue to our tasks
of the day.
And we try to not think about what was taken away, on that bright
sunny day.
Innocent eyes watch with wonderment as they share their thoughts
and begin to play
forgetting the events of that terrible day. Then the steady small
hands build a structure of blocks.
An angelic voice of an immigrants' American born son disrupts
my thoughts as he chirps on.
I focus on him as he says,"look Ms. A , they can rebuild
them, see I did it was easy, see!
I look at the creation before me and see, two wooden towers standing
tall and proud!
A smile stretches across his face as he shows us the towers he
has replaced,
Through innocent eyes I see what I missed . . . a vision of strength,
and hope in our most innocent!
Shelley J. Arellano
