Poetry of the Pandemic

The first poem I read about the pandemic was written by Lynn Unger, San Francisco Bay Area minister and author of Blessing of the Bread, and it’s still the one that resonates with me most.  Pandemic originally appeared on her blog and later was the subject of an article in the Chicago Tribune, March 13^th.  Reflecting on the practice of social distancing, Unger offers that it’s not something we do to remove ourselves emotionally from others, but to affirm a sense of compassion for each other.  It’s a message I’d yet to hear from Washington, and I don’t think we can hear it often enough.

Poets have written about epidemics in the past — Thomas Nashe (1567-1601) wrote A Litany in a Time of Plague, John Davies wrote The Triumph of the Dead, and Christina Rossetti (1830-1894) wrote The Plague, to name just a few examples.  More recently, Rafael Campo (1964 – ) wrote Silence = Death about the Aids epidemic and Simon Armitage, Poet Laureate of the U.K., wrote Lockdown.

Not Shutting Down in a Shut Down

The demands of sheltering in place can be daunting.  “Feelings of anxiety can creep up when you’re sheltering in place,” according to Jei Africa, Director of the Behavioral Health and Recovery Services at the Marin County Health and Human Services Department.  In a recent story in the Marin Independent Journal, he’s quoted as saying, “You could have trouble sleeping, not feeling like eating or eating too much, shortness of breath, heart racing or feeling irritable or impatient.”  Keeping stress levels down is important, and this can be done by “controlling the things you can control,” he says.  His advice: “Exercise, limit exposure to news and social media, keep in contact with friends and family, eat healthy, get enough sleep and make sure to have a solid connection with your main health care provider.”

Saving City Lights

Like other small businesses that are suffering from the economic impact of the health crisis, the futures of many independent bookstores are threatened, including the legendary City Lights bookstore and publishing company in San Francisco’s North Beach.  Founded by poet and painter Lawrence Ferlinghetti, it helped to launch the careers of Allen Ginsberg, Gregory Corso, Lenore Kandel, and many others.  A recent message from Elaine Katzenberger, Publisher and CEO of City Lights Booksellers and Publishers, described City Lights as “a steady beacon…there whenever we need a place to feel at home with our fellow humans, their ideas and aspirations, their curiosities and their wild dreams of a new beginning.”  The landmark store, opened in 1953, has been closed since March 16^th and currently has no way to generate sales.  The good news is that a GoFundMe campaign exceeded the initial goal of $300,000 in just a few days, raising over $400,000.  The store will go on, Katzenberger says, at least for now.  “Knowing that City Lights is beloved is one thing, but to have that love manifest itself with such momentum and indomitable power, well, that’s something I don’t quite know how to find words for.”

Acknowledging Grief

In an interview with Amapour & Co. on PBS (available on YouTube), grief and dying expert David Kessler observes that many people are now grieving for the loss of loved ones but, in addition, we’re also mourning for the world we’ve lost.  “Everything has changed,” he says, and “it’s sinking into us that next week the world’s not going back to normal.”  Acknowledging grief over our losses is important, he adds.  “If we name it, it allows us to be sad, to cry, to feel those emotions…suppressing them isn’t going to work.”  His most recent book, Finding Meaning: The Sixth Stage of Grief (Scribners, 2019) explains that these six stages aren’t linear, and that in acknowledging our felt experience, we can begin to find meaning, and healing, in that.  The process is deeply personal one, and what’s meaningful for one person may not be for another.  For Kessler, it comes in the form of helping others through his lectures and writing.

West Marin Review

Thanks to West Marin Review of Point Reyes Station, California, and especially to co-founder Madeleine Corson, whose attention to my poem Temple Snow helped it come to life.  Their website describes the journal as “influenced by the natural beauty of the land and water, and the surrounding agricultural lands and open space.”  A collaborative effort with Point Reyes Books and Black Mountain Circle, the latest issue is due shortly.  https://www.westmarinreview.org