My Heart Cries - Tribute To America, Part 2 Poem by Nikhil Parekh

If only the building was empty; with scintillating mirrors on its wall creating a ghost appearance; then I would have been the least bothered,
But now my heart cries; as it was occupied by thousands of souls; laughing merrily and sipping coke.

If only the building was empty; with its computerized interiors staring in mock silence; then I would have been the least bothered,
But now my heart cries; as it echoed profoundly with the voices of people inside; the occasional ringing sounds of the mobile phones.

If only the building was empty; with its state of the art architecture desperately waiting to be tapped; then I would have been the least bothered,
But now my heart cries; as there was poignant cigarette smoke hovering around; as scores of business tycoons; contemplated on the economy in the conference room.

If only the building was empty; with its satin carpets sulking under the formal air-conditioners; then I would have been the least bothered,
But now my heart cries; as there were several youngsters munching sandwiches inside; strolling at brusque speeds through the labyrinth of alleys.

If only the building was empty; with its silver ceiling lights shimmering mournfully into open space; then I would have been the least bothered,
But now my heart cries; as there were volumes of cargo and citizen in the elevator; trying to reach the 100th floor in an absolute jiffy.

If only the building was empty; with the emerald drapery completely engulfing the windows; then I would have been the least bothered,
But now my heart cries; as there were more than a lakh eyes wandering around; trying to decipher enigmatic puzzles embossed in bulky files.

If only the building was empty; with its diamond studded doors stringently shut to the world; then I would have been the least bothered,
But now my heart cries; as there were boundless footsteps that were passionately heard; as a battalion of executives marched in all day and night.

If only the building was empty; with its handsome towers escalating lifelessly towards the sun; then I would have been the least bothered,
But now my heart cries; as there were a million needles of watch ticking from the wrists of flamboyant professionals; ingeniously working on unfathomable concepts and ideas.

If only the building was empty; with its heavily scented ambience voluptuously drowning one off to sleep; then I would have been the least bothered,
But now my heart cries; as there were shadows inside looming larger by the minute; as darkness descended by.

And if only the building was empty; with its magnificent assembly of chairs and tables lying deserted inside; then I would have been the least bothered,
But now my heart cries; as there were more than fifty thousand individuals breathing blissfully in the corridors; awaiting death and inevitable pain; as the hijacked airliner barbarically stormed its way in, and crashed inside.