Shelter in Place
           after The Second Coming by W. B. Yeats
by Claire Scott

Things fall apart, the center cannot hold
fish unschool, birds unflock, geese ungaggle
while we stay home with books and crossword puzzles
behind shuttered windows and locked doors
wearing gloves to get the mail
disinfecting packages delivered by Amazon
in an upside down topsy-turvy
back to front world

Does hope bow to hopelessness
will Darwin's finches fly apart
perhaps there are some of us who remember
the fallout shelters of the fifties
complete with telephone and toilet
selling like hotcakes along with guidelines
for keeping frightened neighbors away
recommending one handgun per person

Can we say never again
and keep communities intact with texting
FaceTiming, Zooming and emails
leaving tomato soup for old man Zach
an Ann Patchett novel for Mia
a set of checkers on Ezra's porch
so anarchy is never loosed upon
this confused, misguided, amazing, wonderful world


 

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