Competing Expectations of Stay-in-Place

 We have all this time

crying to be productive.

Or we could just chill.

In recovery

from a traumatic event,

downtime may be key.

Covid’s lockdown could

qualify as a trauma

to normal living.

Disrupted routines,

death tolls, lost jobs, displaced kids

call for adjustment.

Feeling unsettled

can overwhelm simple tasks

into inaction.

Public service plus

family obligations

may take precedence.

Otherwise let us

tone down grand expectations.

We need time to mend.

Together in This Live Experiment

     

               

Unprecedented

magnitude of disruption

hides cloaked in unknowns.

Uncertainty rules.

Dense fog conceals the guideposts

aiding direction.

Trapped unwillingly

in this live experiment,

we adapt to live.

Survival coded

into humanity’s drive

favors the fittest.

A growing number

strained by struggles to endure

likely still need help.

Wisdom may elude

leaders caught in these shock waves

of deep upheaval.

We the people though

can embrace the best within

and rise up in strength.

For the greater good,

kindness, mercy, and giving

could rise to the fore.

Facing My Fears

As I contemplate

this fierce global pandemic, 

questions need answers.

Will I get Covid?

Or could it slay a loved one?

Vulnerable state.

Though lacking symptoms,

have I been struck already

but do not yet know?

Without full testing,

with whom can I meet safely?

Am I locked in fear?

Will this ordeal end?

When and at what cost to all

life as we knew it?

History suggests

we will move on from this scourge,

but at a steep cost.