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POETRY IN THE PLAGUE YEAR
Poems written during the Coronavirus Outbreak 2020
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Alison Ringrose Ponteland, Northumberland, UK Alison Ringrose is a former language teacher who
enjoys writing poetry in her retirement. She is an enthusiastic
member of the Northumbrian Writers Group and has been pleased to
achieve some successes in NAWG competitions and others. Her
interests cover writing both fiction and memoir, the arts, reading,
dogs, family, walking, and in addition she edits the Parish
magazine. Completed on 10th March
2020 Outbreak Outbreak!
Feel fear! The heart pounds, the stomach churns. Remember it at the cinema? Masked terror as the film reel turns. Then Ebola– wailing widows, a dying child, we saw it all at home, in comfort, on TV after Friends and before Blue
Planet. My grandmother couldn’t abide the subject of the Spanish flu. Her sister died, but she survived, clutching her baby, saying her prayers. She shares her memories with no-one. Polio we barely recall– was it on TV at all? Global pandemic– not a film. It’s here and now, surreal’s the
word on everyone’s lips, and lockdown. It must be fake. Will we all wake by chance, and find it’s a nightmare? We must keep our social distance, shun the warmth of human contact, run on the spot, have virtual fun, Stay Home, Stay Safe and Wash our Hands. But the nation bands together to clap the NHS at eight, and do some morning exercise with Joe and wait. Nothing lasts forever. We must endeavour to defeat the foe, and hope that life’s renewed. After the Flood the future was rainbow
hued. Our Ark must sail such stormy seas catch the breeze, arrive safe in port. Fix all hopes on that thought, and when salvation comes, with what elation we will greet it, you and me! The fight will have been fought, and when confinement is ended, we will… break out! Feel free!
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