Ground Zero: Suzanne Berne

     The descriptions given by Berne of the crowds dissatisfaction while looking at Ground Zero made me think the theme of this piece is that things in life are not always what we think they are or what they should be. She said "And then they would turn to each other, dissatisfied." But I can't imagine how they could be dissatisfied. Ground Zero represents much more than just destroyed buildings, it represents death, sorrow, terrorism, and a national unification. Also, all of these people who are really coming to see "nothing," know that there will be nothing more than crumbled buildings, but have to see it for themselves to understand that it is not the sight of Ground Zero that matters, but the significance of what happened there is what really matters.
     And why else would this be true if not for the author's description of Ground Zero itself: "the wooden scaffolding; the cranes, the bulldozers, and forklifts....," looking like nothing more than a construction site. But then, they would see the cross made of two rusted girders, the cemetery at St. Paul's Chapel, the fence covered with banners, wreaths, ribbons, poems prayers, pictures, hats, teddy bears, and flowers. In that moment, any human being would have to understand the essence of Ground Zero.