Empty During The Day And Dark At Night Poem by cecelia warner

Creating a small island of hope in a sea of ruin
Sparkling and bright on Delery Street
Block after block of ruined shells with doors swinging open
Empty during the day and dark at night
This area is a long way from being a neighborhood again
There were promises on thursday to bring the neighborhood back
There was cheering,
There were plaques for volunteers
Empty during the day and dark at night
Women who had been next-door neighbors for 25 years
Until Hurricane Katrina blew their houses away
Volunteers built the houses on the same spot as the original ones
Thursday represented a hopeful beginning on a street that once sheltered
Empty during the day and dark at night
But under thursday's bright sun, the focus was not on the hurdles
If you try not to focus on how bad everything is
You can focus on what is good
Empty during the day and dark at night


(By: Shannah Mackey)