The spring that wouldn’t end
We locked ourselves in
Sunlight became
Fluorescent bulbs and
candlelight for some
And we couldn’t breathe
airways became sirens
and the world fell silent
Out of the storm
We have united-
A shift in consciousness
It was the spring
that wouldn’t end
We thought we were
Invincible
But found out how
dispensable we had become
And becoming became a
part of our daily ritual
and our guns became
masks and bleach
We thought we were safe
The lies spilled out
over the news station
radio waves
Official orders became
streetlights
As if we were all grounded
for staying out after dark
We weren’t smart
playing dead was
no longer a game
Sunday morning cartoons
became one thousand people dead
and all before 8 a.m!
We the people disobeyed
the chief in command
A murderer
The 1% will never understand
Nurses and doctors
suddenly became war
heroes
We cheered them on and
though they tried
Thousands started dropping
like flies
They called it mismanagement
I call it a crime
The spring that wouldn’t end
bleeds into summer
and the traffic lights are
blinking warning signs
We are moving too fast
it will never end
And the tyrants started
to look like giants
We’ve drawn back
the curtain
between love and hate
Division of lives
we conquered divided lines
and we drew lines in the sand
S.O.S
Screaming at the top
of our lungs
Lungs that have grown
vulnerable, to an invisible enemy
Picking its victims at random
And our answers to
questions unanswered
lie at the bottom of Petri dishes
And our kitchen cabinets
became locked targets
People hoarded the markets
of supplies, ripped out
root and stem
We bought all the wrong things
and we’re surprised when
it didn’t keep us safe
And those megaphones
turned into noise
canceling headphones
Your words don’t matter
But hey, take solace in
knowing we still have each other
Hugs turned into construction
barricades
Don’t stand so close to me
When coughs and holding
hands became the most
dangerous weapons to wield
So we used soap as shields
Kept each other in our
“thoughts and prayers”
Still believing something
invisible could cure us
When the very thing was
killing us
They called you a martyr
for leaving your home
in plain clothes
Menacing eyes follow you,
remember
Stay six feet apart
Because “droplets won’t spread
that far” -we promise!
And to the man who
led the command
you didn’t keep us safe
Your words became
bioweapons
terrorizing the land
And it didn’t matter
if you turned off the t.v
you were still there
spreading lies
spewing hateful
rhetoric
And the history books
won’t forget about us
Not again
We will always remember
the spring that
wouldn’t end
Our news feeds
were filled up
The grids became slower
We didn’t plan for this
[oh but we did, I tell ya!]
There are some who
are thriving
Finding their way in
the darkness
Pardon me, could you be
a little more quiet?
You’re disrupting the
regularly scheduled
program on war and
violence
And some became so
blinded by hate that
country of origin
was more important
than a human life
And how did they report it?
We became experts
in the art of hard targets
We had more
coffins than nails
and hammers
Virtual funerals
became a thing
When family and
friends “Party of 20”
didn’t mean the
same thing
Quickly, hide your children
hide the old and the wise
“They are most vulnerable”
lock them up inside
And we tried to
save the college
graduate
Who had no known
preexisting conditions
and as he gasped
for air
He blamed the politicians
for sending them down
the wrong path to
righteousness
And he became
just another number
on any given day
During the spring
that wouldn’t end
So we partied on
live streams-
danced in virtual
clubs
Made friends with
strangers
learned how to love
There were those
who logged
hundreds of hours
building their fantasy
worlds
Where Tim and Tom became
just as prolific as Jack and Jill
And somehow through
it all
We found love in the
time of COVID-19
During the spring
that wouldn’t end
© 2020 Christina Jackson