Prompt Images
Never forget
how We ached for the presence of acquaintances
and friends, siblings and parents.
Never forget
the cruelty and gall required
to float Us $500 for rent.
Never forget
the joyous wedding reception-house party-impromptu
brunch-bulging bar watching the game exaltation.
Never forget
the dulcet-voiced advertisement narrator They used
to mask the CEO stockholder’s desperation.
Never forget
driving home at night after a loungey
do-nothing-on-the-couch evening with friends.
Never forget
after one month at home, Their unbridled fear
that We may never shop again.
Never forget
that We can keep doing virtual happy hours
with family and friends out of state.
Never forget
Those who made actuarial tables
of acceptable death rates.
Never forget
the anticipatory thrill of waiting
in rollercoaster or concert or ice cream shop lines.
Never forget
the bullshit They masked by cooing
“these unprecedented times.”
Never forget
how nice it is to watch just-released movies
on the big screen
Never forget
how eagerly They offered our immunocompromised bodies
to quench the machine.
Never forget
the contentment We felt trying on
all those new hobbies and skills.
Never forget
that for teachers to work,
they first had to draw up their wills.
Never forget
how carefree sidewalks felt before
having to constantly calculate six feet.
Never forget
who They did and did not allow
to march through the streets.
Never forget
once We’re unburdened, that grim reminder
of placing Our masks on Our heads.
Never forget
how some simply shrugged off
refrigerator trucks full of dead.
Never forget
You put on a mask because You care
and are one in a community.
Never forget
the wrenching of reason from phrases
like “achieve herd immunity.”
Never forget
that a night out
can be just a drink in the yard.
Never forget
They should’ve done more,
it was just too dang hard.
Never forget
to savor the next hug or high-five
given unbidden.
Never forget
They could’ve done more,
but that just wasn’t in ‘em.
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