I sit in my chair about to hear an announcement, 

chatter like birds in the morning 

go on before it’s stopped for an announcement, 

it’s COVID 

and I wonder what will happen 

I wonder as others, 

and the world around me. 

Now we wear masks, 

and then we have devices 

and we do work academically, 

without friends to play with,

just me and my family, 

trapped as a locked cage. 

Until one day, we get unlocked 

and we get to go back to school, 

almost like normal. 

Now there’s a six foot rule 

and all of this stuff to keep people safe, 

but really, 

it felt hard, 

difficult 

and different.