Death comes quickly now with deceit
Azrael's swift ****** and repeat
No time even to check his receipts
Where is the forty days' notice?
Covid. the Avatar's fatal diagnosis

Perpetual mourning is our daily hymn
As we dance to the Viral god's rhythm
No end to these incessant chords
Or spiraling treatment algorithms
  
A requiem for the abundant life force taken
Unceasing cantata from the earth's broken
The dark composition's erratic notes
Orchestrated death, or science hoax?

We don't need fireworks to end the year
But answers and solutions to our fears
Ring the world's religious bells instead
For a shrouded New Years lies ahead

Peace to the departed too soon

Winter 2021

You woke me up each morning with your chirps
I know you only disappeared
You'd never willingly leave
For it’s been two years
But really, where did you go, small birdie
You've left me waiting everyday by my window, in tears
You used to flaunt your red chest and smile to me
Now all I see is your plate filled with food, yet no sight of you
Will I see you anytime soon?
You were there with me from summer on a hot mid-June
You stayed through spring and Autumn  
Even through winter, you still made sure to pay me a visit when due
Did Corona catch you?
Are you gone? I'm still watching out for you every morning
You've left me mourning
I'm expecting the worst, I'm hurting
You used to come by every day by my window
It’s been a month, in which I haven't seen you though
I'm worried sick, my head's a groan
How will I sleep?
How will I wake up without your singing in my ears?

-Yara AL-Raheme

Imprisoned in our drunken thoughts of escaping
Is there any single hope for changing?
If the moon is a friend for the lonesome to talk to
Then why does it say, there are no directions available to pursue?
I wanted to live a dream, he granted it for me
And yet, there is no time to spare
O you, lonely soul, are you melancholy, or are you in despair?
Words cut like a knife sometimes
But it pierces my heart instead
They say that the end is the beginning, and the beginning is the end
Will it even ever change?

I was always so mad that you wouldn't be able to see me graduate with my class.
I did'nt have to worry about that though, since we graduated alone.

on january 1st midnight sharp
i thought i heard the voice of new year's harp
fireworks banging
champagne bottles clanking
a new story, a new life, a new chapter to begin
a new year, a new me is ready to come in
or so we all thought...

it came out of nowhere
it started in the east
all cities were flooded with peace
the west still living in utopia
not afraid of the soon to come phobia
fast forward to march - the last big gathering
all forced to stay home and work online
the green spiky ball slathering
the numbers are climbing, what do we do?
wear a mask, keep 1.5 meters distance, don't meet people
otherwise you'll get the new flu
wait, stop, don't drink bleach!
don't trust that blonde, orange-skinned peach!
listen to your doctor and nurses at the front
like a war without guns or tanks

I used to get very annoyed with my mask
each day I’d implore, “Is it too much to ask -
that my glasses don’t steam up when I walk in a shop
or to not have to swallow down buckets of snot?”
But lately my viewpoint has started to waiver
as I discover new uses for this multi-lifesaver
like wiping the grit from my spectacle lenses
or warming my beard when I’m out mending fences.

Then there are subtler means of employ
(I’m not talking about some ***** *** toy)
where this sliver of material,
though appearing unmanly,
has proven itself surprisingly handy.
Only last week, on a long evening walk
I crept into a church round the back of Earls Court
and sat down to the tones of an ***** concerto
that whirled within me like Dante’s Inferno.
Out of the blue I began to cry
emotions stuffed deep inside reached for the sky,
streams gushed forth from each quivering eye lid
I’d not wept so fiercely since being a kid
yet though it did not cover the whole of my face
with my mask pulled high I was
at least,
saved some disgrace.

When this is all over (I promise it will)
hold a thought for how
your mask did fulfill
so many functions,
besides helping you survive
and perhaps carry one in your pocket
to keep the memory alive.

Something bad has happened, we've lost Dawn Wells.
Her friends and family must be going through Hell.
When we lose such a talented person, it's hard to understand.
For a few years she starred on "Gilligan's Island" as Mary Ann.

She died because of Covid-19 complications.
Her demise is sure to cause devastation.
Her family will find it hard to let go but they will have to try.
Dawn Wells has perished and it's sad to have to say goodbye.

With everything going on in our land
I call for you all my dear friend.
From plains to mountains, and from the arid sand
Time has come to hold our hand
And echo your love for all so grand
And let know how far it span
Let us show we love when we can
As in times like this, who knows when,
Again we get to cheer with a beer can.