~* Drowning In Emotions *~

My soul needed the one place that gave it solace, the sea.
Drowning in emotions, I walked without a destination.
An explosion of anger, grief, fear and uncertainty
Propelled me along the comforting water’s edge.

Engulfed in these emotions, I felt steel and glass under my feet
In shattered remnants of shells and driftwood.
I listened to the relentless pounding of the surf but
All I could hear were screams reverberating off metal.

As I stared at my footprints in the sand being erased,
I sobbed at how easily footprints can be erased,
And wondered how many more where yet to be erased.
I shivered in fright as this thought sped through my mind.

The constant cry of those annoying nomad seagulls
That searched for bits of food in a struggle for survival,
Created a picture of world hunger in my mind.
I remembered stories from my history book, and sobbed.

There was an old fisherman now so focused on his net,
His attempt to catch with bait and hook
Had been in vane, but still he kept throwing out the net.
I wanted to scream "Stop! Can't you see it's useless?"

The mirrored reflection of the setting sun
Flowed crimson on the vastness of the sea,
Reminding me of the blood that had spilled this day,
And the blood of all of the innocent yet to flow.

As the sun set and disappeared off the horizon,
I thought about what the end would be like,
And I stood there frozen and so afraid.
I needed someone to hold me close, a connection.

Startled by the rhythm of far off clanging buoy
Warning of the shallow water’s changing tide,
I wondered how many people in the world were walking
Shoreline like me tonight, drowning in emotions.

I stood there frozen in fear, helplessness, anger, and grief.
A salty breeze tugged at my hair pulling me
Out of this abyss of darkened thoughts
To the sound of children, forcing me to smile.

Somehow the lone fisherman on the horizon,
Became just a fisherman, hopeful and determined.
Somehow comforted, my sense of sadness, anger and fear subsided
As I heard a child say, "Too dark ... there’s always tomorrow!"

As the darkness of this coming night envelopes me
And I feel that familiar fear creep in when I am all alone,
I will concentrate on that determined fisherman,
Who smiled, and said, "Ah, isn’t it just a wonderful world?"

A Note:

I took this photo walking September 11, 2001 - on a very sad day for the entire world!  
This is Ambleside Beach in West Vancouver, British Columbia, Canada.

May our faith and a strength of love for each other hold us strong to overcome this madness together.  This not only changed America today, but humanity as a whole.  Sending healing love from Canada.
  
~* God Bless America *~