were i going through this

with julie

i would have killed her by now   

were i with terri   she would have 

killed me   were i

with my north country girl

i can only imagine   but i am not   

i am with marketa

~

truth is   strange and awful as it is

we are closer

than i thought possible

time flows comfortably

for once

there is enough of it   

i wish this quiet life to last

beyond the crisis

~

we were last at the vineyard march 19th

not so long   

only an eternity   colin's grandfather

was quick to see the severity of events

was quick

to make adjustments   

he is not young   he is careful

careful is appropriate

~

when will we next see him   

when

will we dance again

when will i rejoin my cubicle   

when 

is the question everyone asks 

the more salient questions

may begin not with when   but   if

~

perhaps we should be

as children

building castles in a sandbox    too busy

to ask questions without answers 

but children

do ask questions   they ask why

why   when   if   in the end we believe

what we want to believe 

~

i may wonder about outcomes

but the questions

i ask are mundane   local   what do you want

for dinner   shall i make cookies

do you have

a zoom class tonight   did you see marcy's email   

questions that have answers yes or no

that matter here and now