poem by John Donne (1572-1631):
No man is an island, entire of itself;
every man is a piece of the continent, a part of the main;
if a clod be washed away by the sea, Europe is the less,
as well as if a promontory were, as well as if a manor of thy friend’s or of thine own were;
any man’s death diminishes me, because I am involved in mankind,
and therefore never send to know for whom the bell tolls; it tolls for thee.
And former New Jersey senator, Donald DiFrancesco, who was the state’s 51st governor when the planes hit the towers, read the following unattributed poem:
If tears could bring you back to me,
You’d be here by my side,
For God could fill a river full
of all the tears I’ve cried
If I could have one wish come true
I’d ask of God in prayer
to let me have just one more day
to show how much I care.
If love could reach the heavens shore
I’d quickly come for you,
my heart would build a bridge of love
one wide enough for two
But this I know
the day will come
when we will never part,
until that day we meet again
I’ll keep you in my heart
