Today's Daily Bread: First Isolation,12: 20 - 1: 3 Poem by Chen-ou Liu

One Hundred Fifty-Eighth Entry, Coronavirus Poetry Diary

In front of a wall of giant maple leaf flags, the silver-haired retired general, who will be heading up the province's vaccine distribution task force, pauses for a while, takes a close look around the conference room, and finally rests his eyes on the youngest reporter. Then he speaks in a low, firm tone,

"People are tired and some of them even say, 'Oh, my goodness! we can't carry on.' Well, guess what - each and every one of you can! Please remember this: it is not the first time in our history that we have faced these seemingly insurmountable challenges and gotten through. Our grandfathers could storm the 50-mile stretch of Normandy coast three-quarters of a century ago. Today, we definitely can stay at home, away from everybody else for just two more weeks."

"no body
loves holiday gatherings
more than covid..."
I murmur to myself
and my beagle on the couch