On the Grid

By Richard L. Provencher

Sun, 15 Mar 2020
  • 902 reads
4 comments
 

are tiny homes

as voyeurs

from the resistance

of civilization–  

 

like a facade clinging

to a formation

of power poles rigid

in military poise

precise

and uniformly apart

as soldiers

in attentive mode

on this remote tundra trail.

 

With hard-earned pride

citizens are resilient

tough-skinned

and equally matched to

the equation

of ice

& snow and an after day

reward of raw seal

slices for an

evening snack bodes

well for all.

 

An aura of awe captures

Inuit attention

on the glide

of a moonbeam

across such open land

coloured

in whiteness as

a sea lion’s ivory tusk

reminding of thrills

on a ski-doo’s

riding distance that can

last forever.

 

 

 

Certificate U
Poem
Street Level Poetry
Nature

Comments

Submitted by Richard L. Prov... on

 

Richard L. Provencher

Submitted by Tom Brown on

Things are not so different here after all ... thanks Richard for putting things into better perspective. Modern suburbia.

Keep well! Tom

 

 

Submitted by Richard L. Prov... on

Thanks much, Tom. We had more snow and ice last night -- a welcome change to all the sad virus talk. How are people dealing with it in your part of the world?

Richard L. Provencher

Submitted by Tom Brown on

At this stage in South Africa there are still relatively few known infected. Less than 40 I'm not quite up to date. Also I don't think we have had fatalities. The only reliable source of news I have is the radio, but they do refer one to the Word Health (WHO) website. Things seem like most other countries. Industry education civil service and tourism are almost at standstill I think most people are staying at home.

The thing one fears most is that the sickness takes hold in the informal settlements (squatter camps) with a very large percentage of our population. It can spread like wildfire and with winter coming too. Together with a very high HIV infection rate and Tuberculosis is rife.

Also public transport, minibus taxis and trains would be extremely dangerous. The hospitals also cannot not cope as it is, there's no way. The state hospitals would be totally overrun the fascilities will be hopelessly hopelessly inadequate.

Apparantly there has been panic buying and hoarding but I don't think it's that bad. 

I think all of us, the whole world is just hoping for a cure or a vacsine.

When I wake up in the morning I think, hell what if there was no food? and I will have go to sleep on an empty stomach tonight? It's not that bad yet. But many of our people already even now are completely undernourished, hungry, even starving.

We turn to our leaders in this dark time for guidance and wisdom and especially our President. May God be merciful.

Tom Brown