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After the Photo was Taken

by Kristina Woodhill



Some year, some trip

Someone snapped your photo
sunny day, sky clear

Jack and Mom,
big smiles,
matching jackets,
having a ball

The Big Apple
New York, New York

Behind you
two towers christened Twins

One photo
four objects

Dates become markers
events begin the fade out

Visible then
belies the now

2001
two towers obliterated + 2,977 within the scene, unseen

2013
man breathes his last

2021
woman waves lingering goodbye

Found photo becomes a found poem,
wonders where everyone went

Why the raised eyebrows
why the wet cheeks, rumpled sleeves

A captured moment has misplaced its cage

A frame has lost all focus

09/10/2021

Author's Note: In memory of so many. Ekphrastic poems use some painting or photo (or maybe something else) as prompts. I realized a photo of my folks in front of the Twin Towers many years ago became what is no longer in the photo, where everything no longer exists.

Posted on 09/10/2021
Copyright © 2024 Kristina Woodhill

Member Comments on this Poem
Posted by Chris Sorrenti on 09/11/21 at 02:27 AM

Powerful piece of writing Kristina. Hard to believe 20 years gone by already.

Posted by Johanna May on 09/15/21 at 02:15 AM

A captured moment has misplaced its cage. stunning! i love it when a poem hurts

Posted by James Zealy on 09/21/21 at 03:49 AM

excellent work Kristina

Posted by Dane Campbell on 10/11/21 at 10:22 PM

Hi Kristina, First, I'd like to thank you for the kind comments you have made recently regarding my work. It is always wonderful to find a receptive audience for one's writing. This poem is brilliant and deceptively simple in its execution. The final two lines, in particular, are devastating and evocative. "A captured moment has misplaced its cage" is one of those lines you read in a poem that you wish you had written yourself because it's just that good. Thanks again, Dane

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