Dragon's Breath Poem by Roy Blokker

Terror flew, terror fell,
Terror eclipsed the sun.
On national T V
We watched the desperation
Of dancers stuck in time
Of dreamers running nowhere
Of hijacked travelers burning
Of rescuers needing rescue
Of a chaplain giving comfort
As the second tower fell.

Heroes scream at the inferno's edge,
Gaping at the twisted jaws
Of hell
Trying to raise life, raise hope,
Trying to raise the Phoenix
In air so thick with smoke and dust
They cannot breathe, they cannot see,
They cannot work and yet
They do.

I saw God there, walking,
Wearing many faces
In turbans, yamakas
And NY caps
In shades of blue so deep
They pierced through the air
With their tears.
Their eyes, cobalt blue,
Obsidian black, nephrite green
Shone uniform.

I saw Merlin there, ancient, newly born,
Wondering at the future from where
He came, and what to tell his young king.
The dragon's breath spread outward
Like ancient tales from Camelot,
How Merlin made the dragon's breath
So Uther could seduce Gewain
And Arthur would be born
And out of trickery, murder
And deceit, legends might evolve.

And now, weeks after nine one one
Fires still burn, small sunspots
In New York, and workers toil
To clear away the ruins.
And trick or treaters walk with care
In police and fire hats and blues
Singing to and pushing back
The dragon's breath.
Amid it all you can hear
The Phoenix' feathers rustle.