Tell it, Tampa!

Social distancing

I have been inside for weeks

Send margaritas.

Three minutes well spent

My pen was put to paper

Government issued.

The pink orchid points

Like a promise. Sails unfurl

Into the future.

We had to stay home

No more beach or Riverwalk

But we stayed healthy.

Ybor chickens screech

To break the spooky silence

Of a waiting town.

No flour. No yeast.

No TP. No Lysol Spray.

Tampa is bereft.

Covid killed my job

Now I need a new career

I’m scared but here goes...

Life in COVID times:

No shoes, no pants, no bras – but

The face mask stays on!

“Supermoon”

Mask white and sterile,

Near and distant gravity,

Your hope fills our bay.

Nightly ritual:

Playing with my best friend's kids

From six feet away.

Only breeze runs down the street

I wonder who is whispering

Your heart and my heart.

Wife works in next room

Now our sole provider

My search continues.

I tried to haiku

As something new to do

Streaming words not shows.

“The Corona-cation Chronicles Day Fourteen”

Each day creates its

Own rhythm and melody

While poetry glad

To cede the soulful lyrics

When this is over

My spirit will be sober

A human again.

Sky without contrails

Birdsong flutters on blue breeze

Earth breathes a bright lull.

Cardinals build nests

Blue Jays chase them away

Nature perseveres.

We’ve stayed safe at home

And now have great news to share

A baby next year.

“Loneliness”

The sound of lonely

Though surrounded by people

Sadness has come here.

Alzheimer's felled him.

Coronavirus ensured

Solitary death.

When we touch again,

It will mean something different,

To convey our joy.

Cat in warm sunshine

Knows nothing of the world's grief.

When will I see you?

“Necessary Adaptations”

Mami learns Facetime:

Papi remembers my name.

Hold fast to this day.

“Living Solo Through COVID”

I won’t stay silent.

That sound you hear is life still

Talking to itself.

2021

I no longer want to be

An introvert please.

Work in pandemic:

The air conditioner hums

Louder than before.

Tears over nothing

Mask hides my stress and worry

The virus prevails.

Hugging deficient

The touch of love is missing

Make me whole again.

“Pirates beat scurvy.

They can handle COVID too.”

- J. Gaspar, M.D.

Alone in a loop,

Essential and exhausted

With no end in sight.

“Duty During a Pandemic”

Under the soffit,

A bee swarm lingers for days,

Protecting the queen.

Peach tree decaying

Blossoms pink amidst chaos

I too long to bloom.

“Dandelion”

Golden face stretching

Taller to powerful sun

Fearing naught ahead.

“Apocalypse Visions - Haiku #1”

I stumble into

Sunlit patch of forest - breathe,

Chaos at my back.

Together as seven.

Blind darkness still looms outside,

Giggles soak these walls.

The window was closed

I could see you through the glass

Our love seeps through it.

Staring at the world

I leave my breath on windows

So close yet so far.

The sun feels so good

Through the living room window

I should put pants on.

“Tanka”

No one to bug me,

But guilty for sleeping late.

The whole day to do

Nothing! A knock on the door:

Cloud passes without a word.

Sun and salt air may

Help to fight COVID, so come

See us in Tampa.

Pandemic haikus -

Hoping that they will not be

Read posthumously!

Never realized

How beautiful the Tampa

Skies look all alone.

Front yard happy hours,

Kids on bikes, parents waving,

Let’s keep this going.

Online meeting time,

But I'm thinking of haikus

And not listening.

Virtual hand holds,

Eyes closed, imagining Falk

And our dancing ghosts.

A fever of rays

Waft, aloft. A manatee’s

Snout sniffs its greetings.

Suddenly a mask

Becomes a fashion statement

Plaid or polka dot?

A poem a day

Keeps angst away, or try two

You’ve nothing to lose.

The pandemic of

Twenty twenty caused a whirl

Of toilet paper.

“Origin”

Bats in their cool cave

Watch the rats they've bitten crawl

To Wuhan and wave.

“Looking Over Us”

Piercing the virus

The face of the moonlight wind

Is expressionless.

Longing to belong

Eyes meet above masks

Can you see my fear they ask.

Alone together,

Sitting here, nature and I,

Planning our future.

Coronavirus

Humbly brought us to our knees

Alone together.

We do puzzles now

Stay inside - flatten the curve

Mourn our daily dead.

Streets of eerie still

Windows of blank stares reflect

Where did the world go?

“Pandemic Haiku”

The rent is still due

Though the office is empty.

A little kindness?

Epidemic strikes.

Pan strikes celebrate heroes

Who breathe the same air.

The sky is quite blue,

Clouds dancing lazily by.

Quarantine up side.

Fence fixed and painted.

Hedges are all trimmed and neat.

Pandemic do-list.

“#19”

COVID days, trapped, home,

Easter tornado, still spring

Remembered flowers.

Shelves are all empty

Hidden faces and gloved hands

There's no place like home.

Masks, sanitizers,

Remaining six feet apart -

Science fiction...right?

“Tanka”

On my morning walks

I belt out Broadway show tunes

From a sidewalk stage.

There’s no standing ovation.

I sing to the silent streets.

Time goes by slowly.

We wait to see the outside.

It feels like years pass.

Abundant sunshine

Long walks, pool floating and wine

What COVID-19?

We empty nesters -

Safer at home is our joy.

Second honeymoon.

Doctors try to warn,

Ignored until it hits home;

Death is personal.

Black roots, clean toenails

Drug store trip with a mask on

What’s a girl to do?

Excitement today.

A trip! Let’s race to the car!

Breadline at the school.

My hands used to type.

Now they are immersed in flour.

I have found myself.

Remember Tampa

Yes, The way she used to be

One Tampeño Love.

With COVID-nineteen

All churches have grown quiet

Saying silent prayers.

“Motionless”

Everything is still,

As the sun shines upon it

I can imagine

The way it would warm my skin

As I gaze through the window.

My fear suffocates

What will happen tomorrow?

Paranoia gnaws.

Spells of mindless haste

Broken by shelter in place.

While a new world waits.

2020 failed

Virus protection not found

Please reinstall now.

Looking to the end

And a bright sunny future

Coming soon, Tampa.

What to do today?

Plagued by a jigsaw puzzle

Same as yesterday.

We go outside more

Use your car less and ride bikes

Time with family.

Fun baking with mom.

Muffins, French bread and brownies.

Love this time with mom!

“The Last Super Moon”

Tonight the Flower

Moon’s light sprinkles through the trees.

Petals drifting down.

Blue skies and clean air

Mother Earth breathing again

The silver lining.

Fight or flight kicks in.

Birds wake me sky is so blue

My city will survive.

Social distancing.

Here all alone by myself.

Six feet from me, sigh.

Shopping at Publix

Man walking wrong way down aisle

Not wearing a mask.

Biking on the trail

For my daily dose of peace.

Tailgate brewery.

“ICU”

Forty five minutes

Desperate, yearning for you

Through a glass window.

Quarantine boredom

Collateral damage

I’m writing haiku.

People drinking bleach.

Protesters with AK guns.

Yikes! I'll stay at home.

“Upside Down”

Human race suffers

Life smashed by savage virus

Red flowers in bloom.

Bright green leaves unfurl

Our turn to create treasures

Pause and savor them.

Pajamas are great,

A style for all days and times.

And bare feet all day!

Guns are essential

But eyeglasses are not. Huh.

Good guys with bad sight?

The moon's gentle glow

Brushes the bay before me,

Unmasking the night.

“Cucumber Mint”

A freshly made bed

Iced tea on the windowsill

And nowhere to go.

“The Monarch”

Light as a feather,

Breezy aerial dancer,

No worries for you.

Art and compassion,

Bind these challenging new days.

How lucky are we.

Pandemic shut down

Unemployment soars, stocks crash

20s 2.0.

Miss grandkids and fests,

Haircuts, hugs and dining out.

Masks and temps now flare.

The wrong way shopper

Unaware of surroundings

Face mask to face mask.

Heartbroken, lonely -

Heifer bellowing in the field

We all need company.

Pandemic sunset

Waiting for those dark gray clouds

To become bright pink.

“Pandemic Wakenings”

The soft gray cat slips

Out the slit door at midnight,

And the moon slips in.

“Global Annexation”

Coronavirus

Fills its own line with sickness.

Overtakes the poem.

Hearts swap in social distance

Stay away but bloom

Indoor plants can still flower.

My ears are burning

Fitful sleep, fears - quarantine

Nothing in between.

Smell of Cuban bread

Taste of cafe con leche

Our Tampa still lives.

“At East Lake”

Sandhill cranes take aim,

Break the late sun’s yolk, their calls

Ancient doors creaking.

One more edition

Of Whateverdaythisis

Dissolves into dusk.

Compassion Saved me

Books became my Rescuers

Love disguised in Print.

A snuffed candle stream

Sails skyward into heaven,

Smoke signal received.

It’s always been here

Before the shifting silence

Pelican. Wind. Docks.

Coronavirus

Masks are uncomfortable

Fresh air is like gold.

Life turned upside down

Lost sense of time in the daze

Crashing with the waves.

“Family Photos on the Fridge”

Tasting memories.

Recalling my life’s flavors.

From when time was sweet.

Binge watching my life

My food gets left at my door

No one is in charge.

“My Lovely Day”

Forced aging in place

Virtual children on Zoom

Hair and garden grow.

As I write this poem,

I not only feel trapped,

But productive, too.

The world on its heels

Workers fight with all their zeal

Hope and care prevail.

“Quarantine”

Stuck at home. So bored.

People getting scared. When will

This pandemic end?

“Keep Away”

Cough, cough be afraid.

Do not sneeze or bear the pain.

Inside we keep safe.

The sports were cancelled.

Baseball. Juijitsu. Football.

Fortnite. Save the world.

Home working, outside

Spoonbills stretch wings at lake’s edge

Anoles drink sun.

Friends text, checking in

Neighbors bring a plate of food

Kindness surrounds me.

The water is flat

Saturday - empty quiet

Bayshore Boulevard.

“Touch”

The feel of your touch

Is fading fast, air hugs will

Have to make it last.

“Humanity and Love Sandwiches”

COVID spreads disease

While we spread humanity

And love sandwiches.

“Apart”

Two lonely parents

With only Tuxy the cat

Wait for my return.

Dancing in silence

The virus hops lung to lung

Searching for a home.

“Homebound”

Fronds sway gently

An orange butterfly flutters

Squirrels stroll silent streets.

My tiny cottage

Is teeming with adventures.

Oh, my books, my books, my books!

All in Tampa pray

For the vaccine and the day

Bucs with Brady play.

Calamitous times

I search for the stillness

Of lotuses.

People running out

Madly wanting connection

Death at the beach? Nah.

“Evening Ritual”

At seven o'clock

Pans banging, cheers floating from

Windows to heaven.

“Sitting Alone on the Porch for the First Time”

If nothing else, now

I know the names of the birds

Who always knew mine.

“Freeze”

True honest mistake

Yet again, “you should have known”

I’m essential, right?

“Pandemic Tanka”

The last man on stage

Struts and frets as he exits.

From a tree, a wren

Sings “Ode to Joy” as chickens

Reclaim Ybor City streets.

“Feast or Famine”

Our togetherness

Has no happy medium,

Too much, too little.

Virtual schooling

Children act like evil spawn

Five o'clock somewhere.

I experience

Profound joy as the moonlight

Dances on the pond.

We settle down with

A bottle of fine red wine

In our solitude.

“Aegisthus Abandon”

Telescope in hand,

Words on salt sweet air whisper,

Poetry still sings.

“Suspension”

Body weightless over

Water, voice driftwood in air,

Breathe you back to me.

“Chiaroscuro”

Fingers press on glass,

We reflect on dark matter.

Moonlight reaches in.

“Tidings”

Gardenia sends scent,

Connects neighbors through the breeze -

Petal-swirled hellos.

“Armchair Travel”

Blue-spark dragonflies

Let quarantined eyes ride them

Through sun-flamed gardens.

“Lessons Learned Haiku”

Coronavirus

Teaching us new ways to be

With one another.

“Connections Haiku”

I've never felt closer to

So many people.

Pastor works from home

Places chairs six feet apart

Church in the driveway.

Bears lurk in windows

For children to seek and find

It’s the little things.

COVID survivors

Willow trees in winter's grip

Pray for spring's reprieve.

A sparrow spry and

Brown watched twilight loom as I

Started my car. It

Reminded me since COVID

Us seniors shop the first shift.

“Plan B”

Beaches closed? Oh, well

We giggle and skinnydip

In our own warm bath.

Healthy crops growing

Hungry people round the world

No passage between.

All caught up on things

Books read, movies watched, house clean

Thanks, COVID-19!

Ascending in mist...

We cling to thin rope of hope,

Alone together.

Black/brown, soft, curled up

Dead mouse on the path; yet life

Continues – hawk swoops.

Nighttime sounds are new

Thoughts of Corona seep through.

Ellie May is born.

Selfsame reflection

Once most favored friend of all

Too familiar now.

Unfurled feathers cloak

Robin’s tureen, lapis eggs

Unseen, Spring’s banquet.

Sun rays graze the day

Single track sturdy and still

Quiet in my mind.

“Life Transformed”

Breathing tube in... out

Heartbeat, flatline, silence, as

a spirit ascends.

It came suddenly

It turned my world upside down

But I am still me.

Third-floor branches shake

Squirrels busy with chasing

Also work from home.