The Spring that Wasn't

June thirtieth was announced today

It’s a day that feels too far away

Too far for hugs and fun and play

So far. It made me cry today.

This Spring has been cancelled – a light, happy season

The whole thing just gone (though for a good reason)

Sure, trees will still bud and flowers will bloom

But this year we watch from inside our room.

Ducklings are hatching, new wings take the air

It doesn’t feel right. No, it doesn’t feel fair

To be stuck inside with no games to attend

No baseball or tennis or bike rides with friends.

We bunker through winters for promise of Spring

And all of the sunshine-y joy that it brings

We miss the laughter ringing down the road

A city quieted by a common social code.

We’ve learned this new language so rapidly

“Covid-19”, “PPP”, “PPE”

Our synchronized adaptation may be considered art

But that which brings us together also keeps us apart.

I feel a true mourning, I embrace a real grief

A virus has stolen our plans like a thief

Trips have been cancelled; weddings postponed

So many neighbors feel so, so alone.

There’s guilt no matter your circumstance

For each crushed with work, another begs for that chance

For every exhausted parent ready to lose it

Is a grandparent alone with no one to visit.

Compassion is at the heart of our quarantine

Love for our neighbors keeps us unseen

Some days are OK, and some days we thrive

Some days it’s all we can do to survive.

With feelings too big for this little house

Tantrums from fists, frustrations from mouths

But the love in this home is really big too

A gentle hug says, “I’m thankful for you.”

Doing this all without our village

Has made us so grateful for those that are in it

Friends and family, sisters and brothers

We stay apart because we care for each other.

And maybe a light on the horizon ahead:

Summer will break, and our world will mend

Animals prospering, city smog cleared

A wake up we needed, a perspective we feared.

Forced to stay inside, we also turned inward

A collective step back to help us move forward

In a different direction, with deep understanding

Our hearts empathetic, our mouths less demanding.

Our priorities different, we will all play our part

Decisions will be made with community at heart

We’ll look back on these days full of anguish and stress

And think of them fondly, forgetting the rest.

We’ll long for these days, at home with our littles

The laughs and dance parties, the bonding and giggles

Moments so sacred, memories by the dozen

And we will be grateful for the Spring that wasn’t.

Artwork credit Annette Rotz