khanabadosh

Oh what a year it was, or was there one?
Feels like a marathon, yet no miles were covered.
I Remember last December like it was yesterday,
Celebrating New year's near a camp fire

Vaguely aware of a new virus
spreading in some region in some country.

At a blink of an eye it became all too real
An invisible microbe was the new global terror.
Like the five stages, It started with denial:
Oh Bangalore has no roads, how will it get here?
But it sure did, and sure as hell we weren't ready
and overnight we were in a post-apocalyptic Sci-fi.

Then came the rest of the stages all at once
Mostly for and because of the ban on liquor,
But acceptance has been longest of processes
Each one of us dealing with it in our own ways.
But it had to start by drastic convergence
Of our entire worlds to our living rooms.

Office on WebEx, classes on Skype,
Meetups on zoom and catchup on WhatsApp
The carpets were the  new the gyms,
And balconies the only outdoors.
Everyone with a camera on the Rear Window
Looking for gossip and mysteries to solve.

Stepping out was only for groceries and essentials,
Walking disoriented on empty cratered roads.
Covered in a hazmat and breathing recycled air
Bathing in Purell and drinking some for measure.
Such unworldly experiences and strange odysseys
Now we know what a moon base would be like.

But life goes on and we learn to play the game,
Although we’re inmates, we have the gift of time.
Here was a chance to rendezvous with old loves
And perhaps to flirt with something's new,
To reflect on life thus far, to plan future routes
A moment to breath a bit better, in spite of a mask.