Poets in this issue — click a name to read
- Agnew, Zach
- Anderson, Duane
- Bjotvedt, Connor
- Cottrell, Suzanne
- Curro, Stephen
- Depaul, Maria
- Dickson, Julie
- Dimacali, Didimay
- Dollano, Ana Marie
- Dove, Richard
- Estabrook, Michael
- Fahey, Mary Crane
- Flanagan, Michael
- Flavin, Francis
- Gretzer, Stephen
- Gunn, Mary
- Hamlin, Andrew
- Hatter, Shasta
- Hawkhead, John
- Kamp, Lianne
- Larson, Jody
- Levine, Bruce
- Mcquoid, Sydney
- Melton, Bill
- Michalski, Penny
- Miller, Dean K
- Montgomery , Jennifer
- Nielsen, Ayaz Daryl
- Nystrand, Kasha
- O'bier, William
- Pella, Patricia
- Planko, Christa
- Ray, Anthony
- Robinson, Jackie Maugh
- Rossi, Patricia
- Salver, Angell Lynn
- Sargent, Angela
- Sarnat, Gerard
- Savishinsky, Joel
- Schutter, Mary R. P.
- Scott, Claire
- Silverfox, Eden
- Simon, Terri
- Tinkcom, Marina
- Vork, Jr
- Walker-lass, Debbie
- Wasilewski, Nells
- Weld-cary, Paula
- Wood, Chris
- Zempel, Rachel
Gerard Sarnat
As your income tanks,
gougers leverage shortages,
ramp up food prices.
Bruce Levine
Hidden by masks
And social distancing
We live in a brave new world
Ana Marie Dollano
I hear the strange emptiness
of a bustling city turned
bleak, in the wink of an eye
Duane Anderson
Loss of job
no food on table
another species gone extinct
Terri Simon
It took a pandemic
for me to clear the laundry
off my treadmill
Penny Michalski
Cry drops flowed down
Her wrinkled cheek.
She'll never again kiss him goodnight.
Marina Tinkcom
your eyes give it all away - now
for certain, no frowns, no smiles
robbed by a cheeky bandana
Francis Flavin
Silent wanderer of the void,
Alone on your dark journey
To fatal incandescence.
Rachel Zempel
escaping the house
sea of anonymous masks
toilet paper hunt
Mary Crane Fahey
tent cities in parks and parking lots
each one an epicenter spills over
ventilator driven death dances
Jennifer Montgomery
still, disquieting
dust sun-dancing macabre
grass tears up with dew
Christa Planko
Social distancing: a newfangled practice—
Avoiding crowds, evading contact—
Introversion: an ageless art
Shasta Hatter
song of ice cream
children dance six feet apart
along this shared road
Ayaz Daryl Nielsen
doors and windows locked
holding creased and weathered hands
watching evening news
Connor Bjotvedt
Digest. Wait. Listen.
It's <del>spring</del> summer. I smell rebirth.
Someone saved a life.
John Hawkhead
lockdown
sometimes the old teapot
seems heavier
Nells Wasilewski
quarantine kept us home
masks became the new fashion
hiding from a devil virus
Chris Wood
Life abandoned,
if only for a moment
Let's shelter in place
Michael Estabrook
And now because we're "elderly"
we must eschew crowds like
old mud turtles buried in a river bank.
Maria DePaul
Children home from school
Write sidewalk chalk Thank You notes
To first responders
Stephen Curro
April sunshine
the playground quiet
as a grave
Andrew Hamlin
Fifth week of the plague...
a moth, trapped in the train
flits between seats
Richard Dove
starved of hosts
the virus suspects
a conspiracy
Eden Silverfox
In these days of ruin
Sense and reason
Fall on deaf ears
Michael Flanagan
so weary
in the rain outside the ER
she bums a smoke
Anthony Ray
it is not just old
the virus knows not color
a multitude dead
Lianne Kamp
these days my kitchen windows
frame the neighborhood
into a still life series
Joel Savishinsky
Veils, shawls, burqas, shrouds -
looking in the eyes of others, we see
at last our own masked selves.
Patricia Pella
unmasked
the universe
still unfolding
Stephen Gretzer
I wear the mask, yet
no invitation to the party
where trillions dance
Paula Weld-Cary
We cannot shake hands
but can bow to the good
in each other.
Patricia Rossi
spring fashion arrival
wardrobe "must haves"
latex gloves mask ensemble
Jackie Maugh Robinson
for want
of another's touch
hugging the mirror
Debbie Walker-Lass
Duct-taped one-way lines
Mask, gloves, wipe, six feet, eyes straight
Labyrinth, aisle two
Zach Agnew
Cautious feet trace familiar streets,
The new silence of the road,
Bringing both comfort and unease.
Mary R. P. Schutter
Contagious and deadly virus
Creates havoc around the globe
The plot of a sci-fi movie
Didimay Dimacali
Is it now the norm
To wait for a text message
Which reads NEGATIVE?
Suzanne Cottrell
Covid-19, respiratory wildfire,
out of control, unable to extinguish
Hopeful for a vaccine, but when?
Angela Sargent
Parking lot littered in gloves
Inside, strangers become friends
Bonding over rare finds
William O'Bier
Life's fragile moments
create threads of memories
that last forever.
Bill Melton
bodies in trailers
Hart Island mass burials
New York in chaos
Dean K Miller
In just one second
A breath, a pause,
Life renewed in the next breath
Kasha Nystrand
Spending time with grandparents
During COVID19 pandemic
Virtual hugs and kisses
Julie Dickson
Sisters masked
stand six feet apart
missing hugs
JR Vork
family trees
sway gently in the wind
our new normal
Sydney McQuoid
Eyes upon those oblivious
to six feet. Patience walks
far away when anger takes hold
Jody Larson
No destinations, appointment book blank,
I measure out my plodding indoor days
one potato chip after another.
Claire Scott
not with a bang or a whimper
but with Amazon trucks
ruling deserted streets
Mary Gunn
click & collect . . .
groceries brought to my car
by a masked employee
Angell Lynn Salver
Darfur rapists return
wearing N95 masks
no shame their eyes.