Thursday, December 29, 2005

To Build Again

What to do when all is leveled?
Nothing can be done but build,
Even if we have forgotten
How the planks of wood are milled.

In a city full of rubble,
That was once a place of spires,
Stack the bricks that are unbroken,
And rekindle dormant fires.

Strive to meet the highest standards,
Keep our metal clean of rust,
Or we crumble in corruption
That has wrought our present dust.

Can we match the epic buildings,
Those of Shakespeare, Milton, Pope?
We must see the world with reason,
Fact and value, depth and scope.

See the world as it was once seen,
In its glory and its gall,
As before the all-destroyer,
He from Königsberg did crawl.

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