Sunday, March 15, 2020

House Arrest


Isn’t life strange?
The sun is shining.
The birds are chirping.
The flowers are blooming.
And today,
The Governor put us under
House arrest.
Before we knew
What the governor had ordered
Denise and I shopped
For onions, crackers, strawberries
And mushrooms.
Of course, we need mushrooms.
Cashiers smiled
At the customers
With their worried,
Frightened,
Desperate faces.
Isn’t life strange?
There is no catastrophe,
No tornado,
No flood,
No earthquake,
No hurricane
That would impair,
The supply
Of needed wares.
And yet,
People stop.
Stop shaking hands,
Stop hugging,
Stop going about
Their daily life
And rush to grocery stores
To gather supplies
In case
The governor puts us under
House arrest.
In case
The virus lands on our
Doorstep
And barges in.
In case
We run out of
toilet paper?
Toilet paper?
Really?
Isn’t life strange?
We are told to
Go against our nature.
Told, don’t shake hands,
Do not hug,
Do not go out.
Don’t meet your friends.
In spite of all this
“Sound advice”
I am grateful
I can hold hands
With the one I cherish
And feel her love
Pulse from her fingers
To my heart.
I can hug
The one I love.
And listen to our hearts
Talk to each other.
I can kiss
My mate for life
And slip sweetly
Into a magical
Slice of bliss.
I can do all this
While the governor
Has us under
House arrest.