Who Cares for the Carers
for Jackie and Jeanette
by Mark A. Murphy / April 26th, 2020
Just when you thought it was safe
to spin the wheel of fortune
one last time
to venture out with neither mask
or protection
against the pandemic of lies
at the heart of the human soul
you pause
on the threshold of uncertainty
Unable to turn back the clocks
or turn your back
on the needy
you care because the alternative
is unthinkable –
a world without love
a night without stars to guide us
*
So the forgotten nation
of carers gamble
with corona every time they visit
as if the needs of the vulnerable
might outweigh their own –
like addicts
looking for a fix – finding nothing
only pain and deceit
dressed up in poetry and rags
Mark. A. Murphy is the editor of the online journal, POETiCA REViEW. His work has appeared in over 250 literary journals in 18 different countries. His poetry collections include Tin Cat Alley (1996), Our Little Bit of Immortality (2011), Night-watch Man & Muse (2013), To Nora, A Singer of Sad Songs (2019), and Night Wanderer’s Plea (2019). His next full-length collection, The Ontological Constant is due out in June (2020) in a bi-lingual German/English edition from Moloko Print in Germany.
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This article was posted on Sunday, April 26th, 2020 at 8:03am and is filed under Poetry.
