For the collection: 'Life in the time of #COVID' there will always be concerns and worries, some monster waiting to kill us with fangs sharp and ready to murder; but i cannot fall prey to the nightmares when my heart is full of the laughter of spring— birdsong has nested in my ears, and crocuses bloom in my heart; flowering trees are ready to open their buds soon and surely all the beauty nature can provide me convinces me this is just another cycle— perhaps mother earth was

For the collection: 'Life in the time of #COVID' Before COVID-19, I would’ve told you that two months of ample time to do what I pleased was my ultimate fantasy. Time to finally work on my book. Time to figure out how to get out of the dead-end job that is pushing me into a monotonous pit of despair. Time to sit with myself, breathe, and figure out who I really am. I did not anticipate what actually happened. I did not anticipate days spent wandering aimlessly outside, doing

For the collection: 'Life in the time of #COVID'. When I exhale in my mask my glasses fog up. Today is humid. I can barely see where I’m going. That’s nothing new. My path is always hazy. I have dahlias to pot up. They need a head start so we can enjoy them before fall. It’s not raining but it feels like rain wants to visit. I think of sturdy stalks, Buds breaking open. Where will we be in August? I may need the dahlias to provide beauty, names of the dead almost visible, so

For the collection: 'Life in the time of #COVID' The muskrat dodges in front of my car, and I manage to pull the front wheels to the left, sharply. I keep driving but glance in my rear-view mirror at the disorientated creature. Its head is down and angled towards the pavement and its round body of fur is wet. Slick strands stick up near the end of its long rat-like tail that in water, serves as a rudder, but on dry land, only drags in the roadside gravel, much more of a hind

For the collection: 'Life in the time of #COVID' The sidewalk is an empty wasteland. Yesterday it teemed with life, with love, with laughter, with hatred, with noise. Today it's empty cubic feet of air. And me. Everyone that was here yesterday is locked in a box nailed shut with fear. I know they can see me through their windows. But I can still see their footprints out here. A sneaker track in the mud, a dashed cigarette butt, a beer can by the trash. Looks like they all jus

For the collection: 'Life in the time of #COVID' Whoever puts much faith in seers, crystal balls, tarot cards tea leaves, palm readings black cats or four-leaf clovers, séance rappings or voodoo dolls? While some at least take note of where and when our stars align and predicted dates for Armageddon— if just to prove how right or wrong— we basically teeter clueless as to What our futures hold, as has always been the case but suddenly Coronavirus finds us more uncertain, more

Little Hands – Baby’s Prayer Dedicated to Jaden K. Hepburn Little one, Welcome to your temporal home It’s harsh and bright, I know But it will get better with time May your wondering eyes see several moons May life be kind to you May the barge never leave your shores Wisdom and honor will find a home with you Contentment and innocence will grace your heart This sojourn will grant you many memories to treasure Little fingers grasping mine Tiny feet finding ground, May the eart

For the collection: 'Life in the time of #COVID'. There was a party here in the Monroe Correctional Complex last night because apparently there's a way to filter the alcohol out of hand-sanitizer in order to drink it. So a couple of my neighbors sang, danced, and consumed methanol, which I've read isn't even supposed to get you drunk. If I had access to the internet, I would probably fact-check this in an attempt to understand what could possibly be worth risking the lives of

For the collection: 'Life in the time of #COVID' Disease. I know exactly who you are. The first time we talked, I was hiding in my room, afraid my mother would discover I'd stolen cookies from the jar. You were there when the bombs were falling out of the sky in whatever war that was, the one where they were scared to keep the house lights on after dark. It was you keeping that single mom company on her way home from work at Burger King, when she heard voices coming from that

For the collection: 'Life in the time of #COVID' This green haven I know Bears evidence of new neighbors: Maybe I should bring some flowers? Welcome them to their new digs? Twenty-five muddy patches I saw on my ascent to Samuel Morses’s pillar No more graves left to rent Will And Testament burials Deeded to die here by family left Worded to die no by Corona It’s louder in Greenwood Sobs echo in barrowdowns Children skip, enmasked, among the pink, the white Tulip trees Climbin