January 6, 2021
Let me lead you Thomas Turner
Through the marble halls of the Capitol
The seat of our democracy
This New Nation you helped create
Windows have been smashed
Blood smeared on statues
Door jambs wrecked by metal bats
Feces tramped on marble floors
Not by the British who lit fires here
In 1814
And never by the Confederates—
Although their traitors’ flag paraded through these halls
On this January 6th
Past the portrait of Charles Sumner
Supporter of the Union,
Almost cane-whipped to death by a Son of the South
But by self-proclaimed patriots
Insurrectionists
Seeking to overturn a national election
And the votes of 80 million Americans
Blood was shed here
Hold me in your arms oh great-grandfather
And let me cry upon your shoulder
Thank you dear Kristin for putting into words that resonate the sorrows in my heart at this time.
Suzanne
Kristin, I really appreciate the poem you wrote after the January 6 invasion of the Capitol, as well as the Inauguration poem so much. Weeping deep inside for the trampling of democracy and the taking of human life by the insurrectionists, and then those feelings of reprieve, of looking up, of hope on Inauguration Day that you articulated created a shared world of all of those feelings for me and so many others. Thank you.
The unfolding events since show we have many steps to take in order to reclaim a firm ground for our country and democratic processes. My father landed on Normandy on June 12, 1944. He never wanted to touch a gun after the war, even to hunt as his father had done.
I don’t believe any of us can retire as citizens. Being a citizen means participation: we must write our members of Congress to support them in taking strong stands to reclaim the civility and of the halls of Congress itself, and to move forward to the higher ground that our founding members sought for us all. Again, thank you.
Joanne
Thank you so much for your thoughtful comment, Joanne. Yes, we must continue our work as citizens.
Kristin
I wrote the reply above.. Joanne