Three Yellow Balloons (For Boston)
Three yellow balloons drifted away.
This city that took much of my naiveté
Lost some of its own innocence today.
My old city shines and celebrates.
This day is a vacation day, a play day.
Everyone is your new friend,
The chill of a New England winter
finally shaken off our shoulders.
Music plays at the bandstand,
And the Charles sparkles with
Little jewels from the sun.
It is Race Day.
Runners start far away, but still
the streets are lined with people,
cheering on strangers.
We set up chairs on the roof of a brownstone,
Bask in the almost-forgotten sunshine.
Skip class. Skip work. Skip under the blue sky.
Runners start arriving
At the foot of Heartbreak Hill.
We yell and shout and clap and encourage
and find our favorites to root for.
The runners struggle on with an end in sight,
A goal
Worked for and earned with sweat and time and pain
and pride.
And then
Everything changes
In an instant
In a blast
In screams
In silence
In leftover puddles of blood.
I see
three yellow balloons
drift into the air
above it all.
Just floating.
Released by the hand of a person whose life will never be the same.
Goodbye, balloons.
Goodbye.
9 comments
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April 15, 2013 at 6:13 pm
slpmartin
A sad turn of events for what reason…I wonder what justification will be provide for these actions…and under what fools banner it will fly.
April 15, 2013 at 6:20 pm
Seasweetie
There is no justification for it, is there slp? None at all.
April 15, 2013 at 7:01 pm
cecilia
sad for sure.. the balloons are a powerful image.. c
April 15, 2013 at 8:12 pm
crazygoangirl
I just read about it and am still in shock! I don’t know what our world is coming to? How have descended into such senseless violence? My hearts go out to the families who lost their loved ones. I hope they find who did this.
Your words made me tear up.
April 15, 2013 at 8:25 pm
Seasweetie
It is unbelievable. I have been thinking about some of the countries in the Middle East that experience this sort of violence every day. My heart hurts for our world.
April 15, 2013 at 9:35 pm
lucindalines
Beautifully expressed. This event saddens us all.
April 16, 2013 at 2:02 pm
Issy
I said, when I heard this news, that there were no words….but you have created the words. I miss you greatly today…
April 16, 2013 at 2:04 pm
Seasweetie
I miss you too. I am glad you found your words in mine. We have so often been able to do that for each other.
April 20, 2013 at 1:44 am
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