Mala Hoffman

Selections from Life in the Time of Covid 2020

3/15/20

The supermarket
yesterday
people pushing carts
with frantic eyes
hand sanitizers
in pockets
nowhere to be found
for purchase
The checkout girl
said there were those
lined up outside the door
at 6:30 a.m.
preparing for the new apocalypse.
We spent the rest of the day
inside
isolated as instructed
reading and drinking
wine
as the future hovered.


Later

Corner table
by a window
safe alcove
for a last meal
3 friends
air kiss
then drink doubles
to no effect
Phone lines
open to daughters
in panic
as appetizers arrive
Moratoriums
on the virus
hold then break
repeatedly
It is impossible
to ignore.
We order dessert
then walk past
stores normally
visited.
No fondling of trinkets
after difficulties
passing the salt.


3/22/20

Illness hangs
droplets in a cloud
anyone can pass through
Harboring inconveniently
this reality
edges closer
Numbers don’t lie


About the Author

Mala Hoffman is a poet and educator who lives in Gardiner, N.Y. Her work has appeared in the Village Voice, Chronogram, Awosting Alchemy, Literary Gazette and edna , among others. Her poetry collections include Half Moon Over Midnight (Paper Kite Press), A Year of Wednesdays (Finishing Line Press) and Becoming Bubbe (The Poet’s Haven). A new chapbook, A History of Place, is scheduled to be published in January 2022 by Finishing Line Press.

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