08/04/2020
For all the heros out there.
I was sent this poem, written by Pablo Neruda from Chile who died in 1973. He didn’t write it for the Covid 19, but it’s so apt.
IN THE TIME OF QUIET
No one’s told the daffodils about the pause to Spring,
no one’s told the birds to roost and asked them not to sing,
No one’s asked the lazy bee to cease his bumbling round,
And no one’s stopped the bright green shoots emerging through the ground,
No one’s told the sap to rest, deep within the wood, and stop the sleepy trees from waking wreathed about in bud,
No one’s told the sky to douse its brightest shades of blue, and stop the scudding clouds from puffing headlong into view.
No one’s asked the lambs to still the springs beneath their feet,
To stop their rapid rush and quell each joyful bleat,
No one’s told the stream to halt its gurgle or its flow
And warned the playful breezes, not to gust and blow
No one’s asked the raindrops not to fall upon the earth
And fail to quench the soil in the season of rebirth
No one’s locked the sun down, or dimmed the shimmer of the moon
And even in the darkest night, the stars are still immune
Remember what you value, remember who is dear
Close the doors to danger and keep your family near
In the quiet all around us take the time to sit and stare
And wonder at the glory unfurling everywhere
Look towards the future, after the ordeal
And keep faith in Mother Nature’s power and will to heal