Harnessing the Power of Words to Change the World

There is a sound of silence
that comes with and from the rending of the metal
weight beyond comprehension meeting the water
dust and smoke
wave and fire lapping at the sky
the death cries
the prayers
the horrific tearing of the fabric
that is our illusion of as it is
as it should be
when any bridge collapses

and when it’s a real bridge
in a real town in real time
despite the search for blame
the claims and counter claims of people press and politicians
that moment
that sound of silence
to absorb the shock
to honor the dead
who did not understand the crisis of infrastructure
the significance of taxes
the price of war on the bridges we call education
and health care and welfare
and surface transportation
on real lives
in real time
for they fatigue in silence
as real bridges do
stress cracks documented in the census of the homeless
the death counts in hospital waiting rooms
crime on the streets

people dying
just as inspectors document the age and condition
of real bridges with hard facts
document
while we remain silent
that moment of silence
is our window of opportunity to change

And there will be a great cry of silence
shifting the wind of possibility
to external terror
to engineers and agencies
away from our decisions to be complacent
to be silent
about the war
torture
the uninsured
homeless veterans
surface transportation
the endless list of fatigued structures
we used to call social fabric
before we began every sentence
with I

What cotton candy will we place in our ears
what fluff will they
place in our ears
that not hearing
we will be guiltless
and silent

Will the silence work as it does
for Katrina
for Halliburton
for Black Water
for the loss of habeas corpus
for children dying of malnutrition
a bridge collapsing in a neighbourhood
a block
a mile
a galaxy removed from our hearing

Jeff McCallum

Poetic Justice: Harnessing the Power of Words to Change the World

Bridge of Silence