Where you were
Twenty-two years ago?
I had been brought
Back from San Diego
Where I was supposed
To be working again
Instead I was informed
By my mentally ill mother
That I had to house sit
For the Cardinale's
Who had abducted
Us children decades ago
And who claimed I gave
Birth to their daughter
When I was five years old
And whose retarded son
Who was not born till
I was over twenty
Was going to marry me
Then again my mother
Belonged to a religion
That did not seek
The authorities
They were clearly
A group of terrorists
And old time gangsters
None of them telling
The truth about anything
Once upon a time
My grandmother
And her mother
Had joined a group
Of informed bible student
Banned and blamed
For everything
And yet were the only ones
Who were still willing
To use their freedom of speech
To condemn the churches
Who allowed the atrocities
Of the Holocaust
As well other things
Were now under the gun
With whole congregations
Being run as if they were
Communists or criminals
No one gets away free
I had been complainging
For years about these men
Who kept coming on to my aged mother
It used to be young girls
Who wanted to shame her
She enjoyed their company
Now the men were frightening her
They wanted to discuss religion
And have introductions
It was the types of questions
They asked that concerned me
But then the authorities
Were busy controlling
Thier streets from drug addicts
And other types
Leave those nice men alone.
I woke up on the morning of Sept 11
Knowing I was supposed
To go through the process
Of appearing at the local college
Where I was being forced
To go back to school
After already completing
Every level of education
But my mother was special
The Cardinale's had to have us
That weekend they were moving
The Untch's across the country
With stops in New York
And Washington DC.
It is amazing how many
Times people are told
To just go through the motions
With the aged parent
It will be okay in the end.
She was frightened of somthing
Than the news came on the radio
I stopped in the parking lot
I told her I wanted to speak
To the music teacher
I was allowing myself
To take Piano
Something everyone
Thought was wrong
But hey I was over thirty.
She was not in the car
When I got back
And I had to hunt for her
She was watching the news
On a tv in someone's office
Without their permission
I flew home with the car
To make phone calls
My cell phone was refusing
To respond
This was our old house
By the way
Our family got so
Displaced in the seventies
Over all the different groups
Running around that our homes
Were not sold nor bought
But squatted in by men
Who should have gone to jail.
Instead they were acting
As if they were gods or something.
Never forget those years
Of the Mansions
And the Zodiac killer
They seemed to breathe
On our heels
And here we were
With the Santa Crocis
And the Gordons
Watching our every move
Fron inside a house of worship
Who were wanted at one time
By Interpol and the FBI
I found my old boss
Who was sleeping in
He said and had not even phoned
In to see if he was needed
I told him to open his curtians
And look in the direction
Of the huge black plumes
He hung up
My other calls were to those
Whom I thought would
Be interested in me
But someone had been
Having midnight raids
On the phone again
In frustration
I sat on the front steps
Of a house which once
Commanded the respect
Of the community
Saw an old friend
Or at least neighbor
Made the mistake
Of going across the street
To where the gas statioin
Now stood
And asked him to turn
On his radio
He was not happy with me
Nor did he want to comply
The station guy deciced
To throw the switch
And on came the ominous sounds
Of the attack on the World trade center
He collapsed on the ground
He could not handle it
I went back across the street
Feeling terrible
And found my mother
Had a hidden stash
Of her needles
She jabbed me just as I walked in
Followed by the former neighbor
Who caught me as I feel to the ground
I heard her muttering too herself
They did not tell me
What they were planning
Just to get out of town
If she finds out ...
I just sat there
Listening to the news
In a drugged state
Again
That is another story
How many people used
To travel without phones
In thier pockets
She shielded all the calls
From me until
Karen called
Hateful bombmaker
From the old days
Threatening San Francisco
City Hall and others
No Karen
There is nothing wrong
Unless your cat got out
We dont have a cat!
What is wrong with you?
Where are you ?
Someplace on the East Coast
Planning to drive the last
Few miles to NY City
I would not do that.
Find a Motel Six or something
And just squat down for a few days
What are you talking about?
Have not turned on your radio?
No we were driving with
Fred and Jan
Who dont listen to music
They just turned off
On thier way to Viriginia
And we were checking in
Before we go the opposite direction
I would not expect to get through
"Just tell her"!
Tell me what
There is this thing
Karen
New York city
Has been attacked.
Furiously being yelled at
Get out of my house!
What is going on over there?
She says New York city has been attacked
Greg takes the phone
And starts in on his monolog
How much I hate these people
Who took everything away,
And then showed up
At our place.
Greg turn on the news
Two planes have flown
Into the World trade center
Just like the King Kong movie
They say there are another two
Hijackers all of them
And the President has been
Put on Airforce one
And they are not planning to land
Anywhere until this thing
Is under control.
By this time I can hear
The radio
And sighing
She said it was the right
Time to travel
Shut up and get in the car
Okay girls
We will call you back
When we know
Maybe DC is better
No dont do that!
Why?
They also got the Pentagon
It is also on fire!
Oh my god.
Turnpike blue
I remember them well
We would get all the way
To that last stop
On the highway
Only to find
Grandma or grandpa
Had us going
In another direction.
We will call you back.
Don't bother
We are not on fire.
We will still be here
Not going anywhere at all.
My mother must have called
Every truck stop
To find them
So I could be the one
To give them the information
When I was not a journalist
I was a house sitter
Nothing else
Although I did walk their dogs
It was a side job
With the security of not having
To go out and scrub floors
Or something.
I had fielded the call
The day of the San Francisco quake
Brought an end to the World Series
They were in the desert
Gone home the day
Of the Space Shuttle
And called around till
I found the family
Whose Siamese cat
Had gotten out
And refused to return
Till they came home
They waited until their cruise
Was over
Karen called me a few days later
She apologized for her behavior
Nothing compared to her old hippie days
They had attempted to go to NYC
Got turned back miles away
No one was going into the city
Had driven all night
To DC
Where they were also told
The roads were closed
Into the place
Then crashed at a Economic inn
They had finally gotten
The news on and immediately
Checked out again
Traveling all the way
To Florida
Where they were now.
Some people
Don't come from money
But have all the luck
In keeping from being
There the day the police arrive
They were the only ones
Who spoke to me when
My mother died
After she had kept
Me from being on hand
I had made it to ground zero
The next year for the first
Anniversary
Where I had asked for
A moment of silence
I meant from my mother
Who had attached herself
To my earpice
And would not allowe
Me to have a conversation
With anyone without
Eavesdropping first
Cooke Roberts
An old friend of my mothers
Thought I was talking to her
And asked everyone
To shut up
It was one of the last reports
I gave for PBS or ABC
I have encountered things
I did not know
Were still happening since then.
To have your career stolen
From you just because
Someone was afraid
I would assume she had
Been part of the thing.
Her cousin never did
Make it out
Dying on the job
While she was locked up
By Jimmy
Who kept causing
My family
To be there
When bad things went down
He knew all of those men
Jimmy used to be a high-jacker
Trained in the desert
With men in Muslim
Clothing with guns
He was not allowed
To have in the US
He knows I know
And keeps after me
From a distance
He hired that other family
The Pittsenbarger's
To harass me
Everywhere I went
Where I had housing
And job opportunities
But they will not allow
Me to have money
Nor memories
The families
Of those men
Are still here in San Diego
Jimmy brings them by
To make false claims
Against me.
I have another needle mark
How does he get the door open?
Probably with a security key.
Another hurricane
Was heading straight up
Baja but did not make land
It brought rain
And thunderstorms
All those years ago
Everyone wanted
To visit my grandparents
Inheritance on the coast
They took down the trees
And stooled the boats
And the horses.
Leaving us with nothing
Not even the furniture
Nor the fixtures.
I am still waiting for someone
To take me down to inspect
The place they all ran
In times of trouble
All those years ago.
I am afraid
The storm blowing past
Is all I am going to get.
Jova they called it
Pronounced hova
Is that short for
Jehovah?
Like Yahweh?
In Latin countries
They often name
Their kids Jesus
But in French areas
It is Jehovah
Instead.
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