Little Things

 

We all stood there in disbelief

And watched the towers fall.

How could this be happening—

They stood so strong and tall.

Symbols of our wealth and power

In a pile of rubble lay.

We needed strength beyond ourselves

To make it through the day.

 

Some of us got angry.

We all felt weak inside.

Some of us just shook our heads,

And others of us cried.

Some of us got on the phone,

Some on our knees to pray.

We needed some connection

To make it through the day.

 

Some held a cherished wedding ring

Or the picture of a child.

Some of us took a stranger’s hand

And held it for a while.

Some of us listened to the wind

For something it might say.

We all needed something

To make it through the day.

 

Some days our worlds come crashing down.

Sometimes they just decay.

Sometimes it is the little things

That get us through the day

The kindness in a stranger’s smile,

The things that children say

Somehow give us faith and hope

To make it through the day.

 

Often I think how little things

Contain the power of life:

The cooing of my new-born child,

A love-note from my wife,

A kitten sleeping in the swing,

My little girl at play—

Sometimes it is the little things

That get me through the day.

 

 

©2001, Stan Sanford