Chinese Year Rattus-Metallum
A poem by the people of Carbondale
We started the year
In our own dear town
Between rivers that flow
Mountains all around
Not expecting the tumult,
Frustration and tension
That would bruise our community
And sprain our connection.
Travel plans left pending
Without leaving our rooms
We learned to call on
Each other with zoom.
Homes became schools
And offices to boot.
Flexibility was crucial
So was the button to mute.
Solitude and worry took
Its toll on the brain
Knowing the importance
Of staying safe and sane.
Sharing harvests and baked goods
With neighbors next door
Helped us to quiet
Some of loneliness’ roar.
Exhausted and scared through
Weeks filled with blursdays
Hugging furry friends
Chased some blues away.
We stockpiled supplies
Against days ever so dire.
We watched orange flames
Blaze from the canyon fire.
Cries of injustice
Rang out so clear
Calling for a reckoning
Whose time was here.
Even an election
So strange and divisive
Set up opportunity
For emotional crisis.
The spread of the virus,
That roller coaster ride,
Cut off jobs and security
And patients’ lives.
Andonwent the journey,
The peregrination,
Of the year’s metal rat
With determination.
With its wit and strength
It scrabbled through
The muck and the dread
Towards a hope that was new.
Now we end this time
In our own dear town
Grateful for the care
Of all those around.
We can quest for a future
That’s released from fear,
And a blessed recovery
From this fateful year.
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