These times of CoVid-19 are called ‘unprecedented’. And, in terms of scale and location, perhaps they are, given that we are so directly affected. However, it is not new in the world as a whole. I wrote the following poem during the summer of 2014. ISIS was on the offensive in Iraq and Syria. EBOLA was spreading through Sierra Leone, Liberia, and Guinea. Those of us around the world who were not in The Middle East or West Africa at that time were able to keep both viruses at arm’s length.

Look Out! and Look Out

Look out!

Yikes.
Terrorism.
Plague.

ISIS and Ebola
Are the same:

Out of control viruses
Preying on our fear.

Mutating.
Each new strain
More virulent
Than the last.

As we contain one,
Another
More dangerous
More threatening
More resilient
More resistant
Appears.

If and when
We capture
And contain
Today’s iterations,
New versions,
Yet more amplified,
Will appear.

Always.

Yet, perhaps
It is our fear
That (most) needs
Capturing and
Containment.

As we shift
Our focus,
We remember
To look out.
Toward each other
And the world.

We look into
The miracle
Of our lives.
Of All Life.

In health
In harmony
In beauty
In wonder
In curiosity
In generosity
In compassion
In gratitude
In love….

It’s a choice.

At each moment
We decide.

Again. And again.

Photos by Barbara.
Skyline of Minneapolis, MN.