A Poem for Hard Times

It’s cruel to put a firefly in a bottle.
I wish I’d known this as a kid.

It’s cruel to put children in cages.
This isn’t a fairy tale, and the president is no kid.

A knee on the neck or shots in the back!
Either means someone’s daddy isn’t coming home.

Then there’s the matter of Confederate statues.
If only we could save the horses and remove the traitors.

Hiding monuments won’t fix systemic racism,
but acknowledging racism is a small first step.

The first Civil War didn’t end white supremacy.
A second Civil War won’t either. Let’s try something else.

Covid-19 isn’t classist, but the healthcare system is.
Essential workers die for capitalists’ sins.

Can you eat porridge in a mask?
If not, can you safely open restaurants during a pandemic?

You build a cottage above the treeline for the view.
You build in the trees for protection from the wind.

If you can hide away in a cottage,
you probably have other resources.

What strange times we’re living in. Dating by Zoom,
goodnight kisses are less than satisfying.

This lethargy! Is it heat or anxiety?
I guess we’ll know when winter comes.

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