Before this corona thing started,
no-one much minded the gap
of food banks and zero hour contracts
You never heard anyone clap
And yes, we all panicked, divided
as the shelves in the stores were stripped bare
The haves stashed some more in their pantries,
have-nots went without their fair share
But then we all had to take notice
of the starkest advice, which was sound
Stay six feet apart, horizontal
or six feet apart, underground
Because…
…this bug doesn’t care if you’re famous
with status or wealth to your name
A body, is a body, is a body
Everyone’s cells are fair game
The prince, cocooned in his castle
The lass on the till in the store
The doctor, the bin man, the banker
The guy with a 10 on his door
And while we are caught in this moment,
trapped in the here and the now
This crisis has brought us together
in so many ways, and here’s how
It’s made us appreciate people
who can’t just pop round any more
We Skype, Zoom, WhatsApp and House Party
and leave bags of food by the door
It’s brought us much closer to Nature
To bright moons, to birdsong and snails
Hedge funds are now being managed
by goats in Llandudno in Wales
And it’s made us give thanks for the small things
those green shoots that reach for the sun
A reminder that Spring can’t be locked down
and ‘life’ really does carry on
Nature
Neighbours
Family
Workers who are key
All in this together
You
And them
And me
Right…?
So when this corona thing’s over
and the safety net’s been packed away
do the ‘needy’ turn back into scroungers
on seventy pounds ESA?
Or will there be change for the better?
Will we each save a space in our heart
and remember the time we felt closer
When we all stood two metres apart
By Jo Dearden