plague is a time of
suffering & dis-ease––
of pain & care––
living or dying.
it is a signal from nature
to humans
to slow-down––
stop––
when a person is
plague-sick––
the sickness is
a wild fire––
an avalanche––
a tornado––
a desert without water
a threatened
ending.
humans live or die
in sickness time––
days melt together
until they can’t count them––
squares of the calendar
collapse––
people have no choice
but to breathe the dust
& taste the ashes––
this is how nature
teaches the lessons
humans learn on their knees
or in their graves.
plague infects
invades
destroys––
stalks in darkness––
sets ambush in invisible
air––
it is made of fear.
the death-virus of our time
commutes across oceans––
recruits hordes of symptom-less
zombies¬¬¬¬––
leaps from lung to lung
in laughter & spit––
pulling some to
earth & death as others
escape
to live
wounded lives.
the plague cautions us
to be humble
in a world with a life
that isn’t
ours––
it reminds us to be
patient in the gentle light
of our days––
it commands us
to love & protect
one another––
because love & each
other are all
we’ve really
been given
on this earth
to have,
to hold,
& to believe
in.