I wrote this during the first few months of the pandemic quarantine.  What a year we have had, and as a travel agent I find it even more disconcerting to have no work and no hope of doing my favorite thing…travel!  It will get better, that is the way it always goes.

The whole world
came grinding to a
halt.
A forced slowdown,
a 1918 deja vu.
The stuff movies
are made of.
A virus that started
in China,
in a marketplace
and then just as quickly
spread worldwide.
Social distancing,
hunkering down at home
oddly relaxing
a forced slowdown
of all of our lives.
Quarantine,
TP shortages,
no pasta, empty
shelves, scary
something I have
never seen in my lifetime.
An unknown enemy
that we can not see
lurks around every
corner and every contact.
The whole world on hold.
I can be open,
open to change.
Can we make the
world a better place
by working from home,
by not driving and
traveling so much.
Being more considerate of
neighbors and family,
Slow down a life that
maybe was too busy
to begin with.
Have time for art,
for reading, for
poetry, for cooking,
for long nature walks,
for looking at the ocean,
and listening to the birds
sing, for catching up
with family at a distance.
Can we be safe,
not just do what is
good for us but do
what is good for
our collective society.
The whole world,
the virus doesn’t
differentiate, the
color of your skin,
your wealth, the area
you live in.  I stand
against you, I will
not fear.
We will beat you
with our brothers and
sisters around the world.
Be strong, do not fear,
The Great Pause.

Jewel Roberts 6-3-2020