Category Archives: Poems

  peeking through late night curtains shadows crawl  high walls slink alleyways as faint humming neon colors dance   the poet ponders directing images crafting stanzas  praying breath becoming   killer last lines Copyright 2020 Richard Johnson Bio: A happily … Continue reading →

It’s so sweet. So why do I forget to enter my own shelter silent from the global hubbub, the pandemic panic, the pulsating thoughts of disease, deaths, disasters?   Today I do not forget. I walk at sunrise and step … Continue reading →

  Someone’s leaving dishes in the sink and refusing to wash them. Someone’s letting newspapers smother the kitchen table. There’s dirt staining the edges of baseboards and hairballs tumbling over the hardwoods while Dove and Swiffer and Mr. Clean isolate … Continue reading →

Standing here the world looks bright. Squirrels still scamper and red-breasted robins hop amid my freshly cut lawn. A lone but lovely lilac bush and soon to bloom forsythia soothe my spirit. All seems right with the world through this … Continue reading →

Inhale, but not too deeply unless you have recently disinfected your workspace. Wash your hands again. Secure your mask over nose and mouth. Take care so it doesn’t fog up your glasses. Now you are ready to begin. Close your … Continue reading →

This has been done before, standing in line for a long time.         Think of Soviet women who queued for hours for bread.               And I have learned about the lines … Continue reading →

Untitled Cops in the T.P. aisle. Everyone freaking out. I just want the chips. Scary Snacks Going to the store,to get the groceries and snacksis scary right now. Untitled Big shopping tonight.Just once a week till it’s safe.Mandatory  masks.                                                                                                                                   Untitled … Continue reading →

I’m trying to write a poem about                 the personal cost of this pandemic                 the losses I feel.   How I miss being at the office every day.                 Then I remember the first-responders                 who must go to … Continue reading →