- makeswordswork
(HASHTAG) BLURSED
Updated: Jun 11, 2021

The death toll rose
alongside first loaves
and heritage fruit cake.
Tomatoes stretched towards the sun,
legs stretched in solitude on daily walks;
tempers, sanity,
the truth
stretched veil-thin across the globe.
Over lagging video calls
we wore pyjamas to work
with lockdown beards;
we wore bin liners over uniform
as our only protection.
We camped in gardens,
star-jumped along to YouTube,
chatted from the ends of driveways,
and FaceTimed our final goodbyes.
We talked about "after",
"when it's over",
"back to normal",
and questioned if after the hiatus
we would want it anyway,
as though a return
were even feasible.
Every question had a hundred answers.
Every answer led to a hundred questions.
We followed ever decreasing circles
with no end in sight.
I watched people live with anxiety and fear
as I have for all my years.
And, for the first time, I found peace.
Writing by SPREKEN
Artwork ‘Lockdown Time Log 2020' by GILLY ROGERS