QUARANTINE LIFE: POETRY PROMPT--PANDEMIC

PANDEMIC 

We’ve all gotten our marching orders

Not to run headlong into the fight

The instinct of some, is to tangle

But this win comes from inside

Yet, there is still great denial 

Still those content to defy

And arrogantly ignore warnings

Caring less if others die

And when there’s death, just as before
Another ailment will be blamed
Not complications from stupidity
Pneumonia will be named
To say the virus was the culprit
Exposes them to guilt and shame
Unnecessary loss of life
But to some, it’s just a game

Contradicting thoughts reign daily

No confidence in some to lead

Corrupt and inept, are the speakers 

Who show no care for those in need

Those with integrity are silenced

Those expert, suck up or shrink

Those who are complicit, are frightened

To say what they honestly think

Ignorance in high places-- 

Astounding

There’s tone deafness and callousness, too

If not for those who urgently seek truth

Few would actually know what to do

Everywhere we find creatives
Seeking ways to lessen pain
Trying hard to find the beauty
In a world that’s gone insane
Reaching back for long lost music
Even as some makers pass
Finding solace in the music
Wondering how long this will last

Sometimes it’s like a movie

Other times, like a bad dream

The incompetence is quite exhausting

More infuriating, is the greed

Someone knew what was on the horizon

But they chose to say nothing, except

To their well heeled friends and loved ones

Whose portfolios went up for sale 

Every day the numbers are growing

The sick and the dying alike

Are mourned from an unnatural distance

Crematoriums running on high

Front line workers, exhausted, are pleading

Preaching methods to flatten the curve

Homeless people in parking lots, sleeping

Those who could help, lack the will and nerve

The heroes we see are unlikely

Those who we all ignored before

Who knew taking one’s life in one’s own hands

Meant a trip to the grocery store?

Or a mall, a church, or a concert?

A museum, a club, or a gym?

The likelihood everyone’s listening

Hovers between none, and slim

But as always, apologies abound

Only after the damage is done

The backpedaling’s simply amazing

Demonstrating regard for no one

It seems everyone’s on their own now

Charity; humanity reign

In the absence of a leader

Unsung heroes emerge again.

VRWc2020