Diane Englert
COVIDku—Haikus for an Uncertain World
ku – 苦
noun
pain; anguish; suffering; distress; anxiety; worry; trouble; difficulty; hardship
I
Nature is pissed off!
We failed to honor the earth.
Now we pay the price.
II
Skin dry from washing,
face chaffed by the mask I wear,
heart heavy from loss.
III
No shared gatherings.
Goodbye to hugs and handshakes.
Now is all we have..
IV
Inside—fear, outside
robins nesting in the spruce
remind me—it’s spring.
—Submitted on
Diane Englert is a writer and theater artist. Her work has appeared in We’ll Never Have Paris, Ovation, Nanoism, and other journals. Englert is sheltering in place with her husband and daughter in Portland, Oregon.
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