Or slowly

Or perhaps not at all

Each blending seamlessly into the next

A continual gray foggy morning

Wet with dew

A strange dream of a year

When no one came to call

Invisible enemies lurked everywhere

A year when going out without a mask

Risked both your life

And the lives of others

A disturbing dream

Of people locked in their homes

Imprisoned in computer screens

Or in masks muffling their voices

Secret smiles discretely covered

Touch not allowed

We were virtual people

Drifting ghostlike

In a virtual reality

As we waited to be released

Longing for the day to come

When a smile,

A friendly touch,

A loving hug

Would awaken us to real life again

The Post Bulletin publishes poetry by local and area writers every Monday. Send poems to Meredith Williams at life@postbulletin.com.