Just For A While
It was a strange time.
The world was quite silent
A cold wind was blowing
It came from the east
The streets were all silent
The people were frightened
Spring time and lockdown
The tension increased
Traffic was lighter
The pavements were empty
The shops and the offices
Shut up and barred
A shadow hung over
The towns and the cities
The faces of workers
Were haggard and scarred
Doctors and nurses
Were there on the front line
All fighting to save
The afflicted and weak
The young and the old
The rich and the poor
Often fighting for life
For the outlook was bleak
It was April – the springtime
Two thousand and twenty
The world was in lockdown
And Covid was rife
Keep two metres distance
And wash your hands often
Don’t take any risks
For it could mean your life
And yet came the laughter
The video conference
The memes, the cartoons
Of apocalypse now
Of crashes and slip ups
Of cooking disasters
Of children just laughing
Dogs licked by a cow
Of unabashed singers
Out there on the doorstep
Singing their hearts out
The whole world to hear
Dads playing practical
Jokes on their children
Mums dressing up
In theatrical gear
Kids doing wheelies
On rusty old bikes
And dinner suits worn
For taking out trash
Jumping from boxes
To frighten their colleagues
Wearing a mask
Or a hairy moustache
Practical jokes that would
Catch the unwary
Cellophane sheets
Spread on toilet or door
Screams of surprise
Of dismay and frustration
As the joker would laugh
‘Til they fell on the floor
Swinging from branches
Which crack and then splinter
Falling in water
To musical beats
Diving in snow drifts
Then swimming to surface
Some in slow motion
We watch the repeats
It’s quite amazing
In doom and disaster
How we all try to make
Each other smile
Though there’s nothing to laugh at
We deal with it sanely
And we laugh. We feel better
If just for a while
