by Kimberly

what is a home?

is it a palace, a beautiful place

where no mad men are born and where

royalty can live in luxury forever?

is it a safe house, a sturdy place

where only canned foods are kept and where

the vulnerable feel truly well-protected?

is it a fortress, an impenetrable place

where no monsters live and where

heroes can finally rest?

is it a prison, an inescapable place

where criminals remain trapped and where

overbearing authority inspires anarchy?

is it just a normal place

where a family sleeps, eats,

spends time together,

time goes by slower,

food supposedly tastes better,

and love reigns free and pure?

what has my home become?

a week turned into two weeks

turned into a month.

i long to turn back time,

back to before the world got sick,

before the world turned

to social distancing.

i hope i can look back on these dark times,

when the world looks hopeless

and people fight for basic supplies

and they refuse to stay at home,

and i hope i can finally

suck in enough air in my sad lungs

to laugh until my heart’s content.