A shadow fell across the land.
The people didn’t understand.
A tiny thing we couldn’t see
Had stopped us all from feeling free.
We’d live through troubled times before,
Fires, floods, drought and war,
Cyclones, earthquakes, climate change,
But this was different,
This was strange.
The leaders struggled to explain
The gravity, the threat, the pain,
That Baby Boomers were at risk.
They can’t be hugged! They can’t be kissed!
Schools were closed, shops were shut.
Empty cafes, jobs were cut.
People felt penned-in like cattle,
While health workers fought a losing battle.
And those who thought they had insight
Prophesied, “this too shall pass.
We’ve had pandemics in the past,
It will move on, it will not last”.
In future times someone will write
How we all struggled to the light.
Humanity must have its chance.
There is no darkness but ignorance.
Apologies to William Shakespeare.
By Dianne Colk