While checking my eyes
the optometrist asked
why I was wearing a mask,
but before I could respond
she asked me to read
the letters on line 5,
and though I wanted to say:
C O V I D,
instead I just told her
line 5 was too blurry to read.

I keep hearing it said
that the spread of AI
is causing many to feel
that they can no longer
trust other people,
and that may be,
but I must confess
what caused me to feel
that I could no longer
trust other people
was seeing them act
like this pandemic is over.

According to a recent report
“Since the beginning of the month,
over 350,000 birds
have died
from an avian flu outbreak
in Indiana,”
and though you may not be
in Indiana,
you most certainly still are
in this era of plagues.

Apparently
“With the rise of new tools
in molecular biology,
it’s becoming clear
that viruses
and other pathogens
can remain in the body
or otherwise affect its workings
for a surprisingly long time,”
which is another reason
it’s becoming clear
you should wear a mask.

When I tell my friends
that I am minimizing
going out
as I cannot afford
to get sick
they just roll their eyes,
but when I tell them
that I am minimizing
going out
as I cannot afford
to get gas
they nod sympathetically.

As I shopped for groceries
an elderly woman
tapped me on the elbow
and in a kind voice said
“I think you and I
are the only two people
wearing masks in here,”
so I looked at her
and in response said
“I’m glad to know
that I’m in good company.”

I have heard it said
that we have passed
“The point of no return”
and that “New evidence
shows Antarctic melting
is already locked in,”
which is a reminder
that this ongoing pandemic
is not the only thing
we must figure out
how to survive.

The intake form
at the doctor’s office
included the question
“are you feeling
down, depressed, or hopeless?”
which seemed to me
like a rather rude way of asking
“are you paying attention
to the state of the world?”

Based on the wastewater data
human metapneumovirus
(better known as HMPV)
is currently surging
across the US,
which is an unfortunate reminder
that what you find yourself
trying to survive
is not an era of plague
but an era of plagues.