Heather (aka Ogo) – Singapore
It was cold outside as the wind blew hard when she looked at me and asked,
“Ogo, my grandma, please tell me how long did the pandemic last?”
Frozen in thoughts I quietly replied,
“Sweet child, my love, Covid never just died.”
Covid quietly stalked; it crouched then burst onto the scene.
It stopped the world as we knew it, held us hostage for a vaccine.
It arrived with a vengeance, all malice and so mean
It took lives, tore apart families, and all this can definitely be seen.
Flowers kept blooming and butterflies fluttering.
Are they still beautiful when millions are suffering?
The daily count ticked up as the invisible stalker kept lurking
When it will strike, no one knows, but fear felt disconcerting.
During Covid I was stranded on a tropical island all alone.
Not in numbers of course, plenty of people around, but my heart felt it was prone.
I longed for home, for peace and joy. I longed for pain to cease.
I ached for friends who’d lost their light, and yearned for their prior peace.
I saw in her eyes the need to know
Why the pandemic had hurt everyone so.
Calculating my response, it came to me,
Lots of things are invisible which makes them hard to see.
I cannot see the notes on paper turn to music by a band.
I can’t see the wind or your thoughts or aphid’s prints in the sand.
But I feel the breeze brush my cheek and your smile light your eyes,
And I see the spider’s web weave the lace that hides its lies.
Covid hurt so many souls; took life and hope and more
It also showed us love as we cried for those we adore.
All by itself, love is invisible too just like Covid that’s bad and mean.
But love is magical for it sustains and makes our hearts much more keen.
Covid stinks in every way so prepare for the next one to come
Love kicks its ass and fills the voids, holding it under its thumb.
LIfe is hard, dear little one, but pandemics, hate and all
They come and go and come again, and to love they will always fall.
So snuggle in, my precious one, because here is the beautiful truth:
Family and friends surround you now and sustain you through your youth.
Bad things will happen now and then that may even cause you pain.
Look for the invisible goodness that abounds so love can come again.
After 18 months in Singapore under Covid (unable to leave because if she left, she would not be allowed to return), Ogo was finally able to visit her first grandchild.