Plague Poems – The Hundred-and-Thirty-First Week
If only there was a specific date
a clear singular one
to which we could connect
the pandemic
we would be able to know
which date to set aside
as a day of remembrance.
Lacking for such a date
we have decided not to bother
with trying to remember
the pandemic at all.
*
Having already failed to learn
from the fable
of the tortoise and the hare
the likelihood
of a plague filled winter
provides us an opportunity
to fail to learn
from the fable
of the grasshopper and the ants.
*
When it is said that the virus
(our handling of the virus)
has resulted in a drop
in life expectancy
they mean a loss
in the average expected duration
of a life
not a decline in your expectations
from life.
Though the virus
(our handling of the virus)
may cause that as well.
*
When describing others
my grandmother would say
that this or that person
had a kind face
if asked to explain what features
earned such a compliment
she would simply reply
that she could just tell,
now when I see
a covered mouth and nose
I think to myself: there is a kind face.
*
Editorial Note: This is a collection of Plague Poems written between September 10, 2022 and September 16, 2022.
They were initially posted online on Twitter at @plaguepoems and Instagram at @plague_poems.
Throughout the duration of this crisis new poems will be posted regularly at that Twitter account, they will then be collected and reposted here in weekly increments.
*
I confess
I dislike wearing a mask
but in fairness
I also dislike wearing a shirt and tie
and in terms of unwanted apparel
I would rather dress
for a world in which we try
to take care of one another
than try to dress
for a world in which I make
a couple more dollars an hour.
*
You do you
would not be so bad
if it only meant
you doom you.
*
Some helpful advice
when interviewing for a job
should your interviewer ask:
“where you see yourself
in five years”
it is best not to answer
“still in a pandemic.”
*
Bad as they are
the numbers do not tell us
how bad the plague was,
for it is too soon
still far too soon
to stop counting,
no, the numbers do not tell us
how bad the plague was
only how bad
the plague has been
so far.
*
When they tell you
(and they will tell you)
that all you need
to get through the pandemic
is to be flexible and strong
consider that those are the terms
most commonly used
to describe trash bags.
*
If you are curious
why the plague
is so completely absent
from the election coverage
just remember
that election coverage
is all about who might possibly win
whereas the plague
has already won.
*
If you still
insist on taking precautions
you will be accused
of belonging to a cult
by your neighbors
who practice human sacrifice.
*
Sometimes
when I am out shopping
I think I see you
similar hair similar height
the same kind of glasses
if only I could see
their nose and mouth
I would know for sure
but then I stop myself
it couldn’t be you
for they are masked
and you were never the sort
to care about others.
*
What?
Are you really going
to wear that mask
forever?
No,
I have no intention
of wearing this mask
forever
though I figure
I will keep wearing it
during the pandemic.
*
When the pandemic began
artists covered the walls
with bright posters
the images along the sidewalks
assuring us we were in this together
exhorting us to protect each other
but that was long ago
now the walls are bare
and the only thing
along the sidewalks
are discarded masks.
*
I have seen the x-ray
and so I can confirm
that inside of me
there are not two wolves
though there are two lungs
and they do not look
as healthy as they once did.
*
Make it a point
not to skip meals
get enough sleep
exercise regularly
cut down on screen time
call your friends to chat
read diverting books
and walk outside daily
if you do all of this
you will likely find
that the state of the world
is still quite depressing.
*
The greatest fear
of many in our midst
is not the plague
or the climate
or the stranger
but the idea that we
can treat one another
as human beings.
*
If a hundred thousand deaths
can be counted
as an incalculable loss
then as of this week
we have passed
ten and a half incalculable losses.
*
If you ask them
some people will say no
not everyone is willing
to drive you to the airport
or water your plants
or move a couch with you
or help you at all
if you don’t ask
their responses can’t disappoint
which must be why
we are no longer asking
anyone to take precautions.
*
It happens
but to someone else
someone else’s parent
someone else’s sibling
someone else’s colleague
someone else’s friend
someone else’s love
death is a tragedy
but it is someone else’s
not yours
though there are moments
when you suspect
that the tragedy is ours.
*
At the end of each week
acknowledge
that you have survived
the plague
for another week,
and though this should not
make you feel proud
hopefully it is enough
for you to still feel something.
*
*
Plague Poems…the following week
About Z.M.L
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