I thought I would feel different. Lighter somehow, younger somehow, more energetic—somehow. But I do not. I have no lasting negative side effects from my second vaccination, but there has been no miraculous elevation in my spirits, either. They soared after the first one. I felt a huge mix of relief peppered with a little guilt, optimism, and great expectations. Trump was defeated, Biden was sworn in, and I had my first vaccination.
However, in the weeks and days since, Trump has been acquitted; my neighbors still have Trump banners hanging from their porches and signs littering their yards. People are still dying from COVID, and the world is not safe for humans or the planet they are supposed to protect.
It feels like the shot is giving us a time-out rather than a cure. Something impermanent and vague. I remember feeling invincible at eighteen, impatient for life’s adventures. Sixty years later, I feel tired, unmotivated, and afraid of death.
Maybe if the sun would shine.
America
People learn to love
Trump is acquitted by fools
People are dying
Eighteen
Feeling invincible
Impatient for life’s journeys
Now I wait for death
The Shot
It feels like a time-out
Something impermanent, vague
Rather than a cure
Expectations
Later I feel tired
Maybe if the sun would shine
I would feel its glow
Good News
Trump was defeated
I had my first vaccination
Biden was sworn in
Carole J. Garrison 