Miami Building Collapse - Is This So Real, I Ask Myself! Poem by Bernedita Rosinha Pinto

Is this a building-collapse
or an explosion,
I ask myself.

Is this what happened
in a powerful country called America,
I ask myself.

Or is this an old building
that has collapsed in our Mumbai city in India,
I ask myself.

Is this the truth
or is this a sudden grim tragedy
that jeopardized lives and safety
when Americans are so rest-assured
of a beautiful and secure tomorrow,
I ask myself.

Is this where people might have died
and got buried alive unexpectedly
or was it so written in their book of fate,
I ask myself.

Is this how negligent authorities could be
that there were no safety inspections
or warnings to the residents
about the frailty of such structures,
I ask myself.

Is this an unexpected incident
that no one felt any vibrations or tremors
that as the building came crumbling down
there was no chance for people to escape or run,
I ask myself.

Is this how people
in such a highly developed country live
and sometimes have to just die
in such tragic circumstances as this,
I ask myself.

Is this the truth
that those eyes that would wake up everyday
had to suddenly close
and go to sleep never to wake up again
when that part of the condo
just came crushing down on them without any mercy,
I ask myself.

Is this the place where
another part of the building could have also collapsed
and many more lives would have been buried
under the dust and debris all at once,
causing more pain and sufferings,
I ask myself.

Is this the country
that goes to help other countries
and in their own backyard
a building collapses taking innocent lives down
under the ground without any delay or apprehension,
I ask myself.

Is this the great nation
which has skyscrapers taller than mountains
yet a little building just crumbles
like a pack of cards
when so much development has occurred
and new buildings have sprung around
their towns and cities like mushrooms,
I ask myself.

Is this the same famous city of Miami
where tourists from all over the world flock
to surf and sunbathe in the sea waters,
and then go back happily after their holidays,
I ask myself.

Is this the State of Florida
which I once visited with joy
and today beneath the rubble of a collapsed building,
firefighters are busy searching for survivors,
I ask myself.

Is this the right time on this earth
when a pandemic is creating such a havoc
in every corner of the world,
that a building collapses so vividly in Miami
leaving saddened families
no chance to sit or sleep in the comfort of their homes,
I ask myself.

Is this the right place to pray
where when that building has collapsed,
where will those who lost their home and family members,
where will those who have no one to hold and cry
sit and grieve and accommodate their distress,
I ask myself.