Life Still Rises

life still rises

it’s
still life
alone

even if we don’t celebrate
or meet together anymore
it’s still all right to share a drink
or talk with grandma at the home
suspended in a box
people softly chatting smiling
and strangers mingling virtually
our friends connecting through the phones
we press our face into the screens
zooming conversations

they wear the shock
they wear a mask
or not

still
quiet
lonely

let’s celebrate what joy we can
before our time dissolves on earth
before our souls arrive with God
let’s drink to fragrant memories
and vibrant hopeful days
don’t conjure thoughts of coffined graves
or moldy asiago cheese.
instead let’s shine the light of God
let’s storm in spite of Covid-fears
the gates of courage not defeat

in pixelated homes
and solitary prose
because

life
still
rises