I'm the little boy that gives up his favorite teddy bear,
so that a stranger may be comforted.

I'm the single mother thanking God it wasn't her child that died.

I'm the old man, angry and resentful
that his military doesn't want him because of his age.

I'm the teenaged girl that spends hours cutting ribbons
for others to wear as a symbol of remembrance.

I'm the young man who doesn't understand
why his father was running up the stairs as the building fell,
trying to save just one more person, instead of saving himself.

I'm the little girl, playing with her doll,
who can't understand when someone screams hateful things
at her because of where her family is from.

I'm the police officer, trying to keep idiotic reporters safe,
when his wife is still among the missing.

I'm the fire fighter that called in sick that day,
only to discover that someone else died in my place.

I'm the man who survived the falling building,
only to learn that his sister and baby niece were in the plane.

I'm a spelunker, who is climbing down into the remains of a building,
hoping to find someone still alive.

I'm the dog handler, searching for bodies,
that has to comfort my animal when only death remains.

I'm the woman who stands in line for five hours
in order to give blood, hoping to help strangers in need.

I'm the first passenger to get back on a plane,
even though I'm terrified, because I know somebody has to be first.

Who am I? ...just a fellow citizen