A Pandemic Poem

 A Pandemic Poem

Before the pandemic
we bustled along
Busy, moving, hurried.
Before the pandemic
we saw friends, 
went to games,
went to work,
hugged,
wondered what it would be like
if there was a pandemic.

I wondered.
I imagined. 
I was wrong.

A pandemic isn't exciting
like a blizzard.
It isn't dramatic
like a hurricane...
If you're lucky.

We were lucky
so the pandemic was just
an absence.
an absence of friends,
an absence of sports, 
an absence of school, 
an absence of schedules, 
an absence of movement.
And eventually
            an absence of Back-to-School
                and family holidays
                        and travel
                                and predictability
                                        and security
                                                and confidence.

After the pandemic
(is it after?)
absences became additions.
You-cans became You-really-shoulds
and even You-musts.
You must go to school.
You must go to work.
You must start seeing friends
    and going to stores
        and talking face-to-face
            (without masks)
                and hugging.

Eventually
You-musts start to feel like You-cans.
But that takes time
and patience
and practice.

After the pandemic