Dennis Fritzinger – The Bell
there should be a bell
we ring, that would make
everyone gather
in the town square, to
respond to whatever
emergency requires response.
common brass, carved with letters
saying: “NOW!” or saying, “LIBERTY”–
since liberty depends on
eternal vigilance, as
somebody once said.
someone should be ringing it
and we should be responding:
we, who see the shorelines
disappearing, islands sinking,
glaciers melting in the mountains
and greenland, and antarctica,
the slow motion and fast motion
effects, who can see through time
and observe the consequences.
where are we? where is
the mass movement? the million citizens
thronging the street? the bell
seems to be silent, for now,
nobody has rung it.
i wait its vibrations
in the summer night, i wait
its urgent clarion–
are you listening? are you waiting too?
Date: June 5, 2012
Categories: Dennis Fritzinger
