I am huddled in the coroner,
a little beast within a man,
And when at night he studies bodies,
I come out,
now and again.

The sun is shining, games not played
only the dog walkers parade
Morale declining children pining
This is the plague decade.

Key workers nervously
bravely give service
while others wait
to discover their fate.

Watching wretched news
numbers are rising
much televising
loves no one would choose.

coronavirus
coronary episode—
coroner report


© 2020 Mark Toney.  All rights reserved.

A private party
Etudes
People around me
Vanity and beauty
From where I sat
A glow of hope
In an ashen sky
Abandoned arguments
Reviews and dismal news
Changing moods
Pauses for profanity
Shadows and reality
Simulacrums
Patented predictions
Solemnity and sorrow
Corpses for the coroner
Silence.