Poem: Long Kiss Goodbye

Here we are three years and three months since the March 2020 pandemic shutdown. I’m feeling reflective. After living through our generation’s most unprecedented event (so far) what has changed in your day to day? Are the “Keep 6 Feet Apart” stickers on the office carpet beginning to fade? Do people keep their distance from each other in public places? Not so much. I shook someone’s hand at an introduction this week. I admit I balked, unsure if the person was willing. Have you begun to touch your face guilt-free? I never stopped rubbing my face. I needed something to touch for all the “WTF” moments.

Three years after the global lockdown and inflation is outrageous, gas prices have not come down, and rent gouging is causing many to move out of their towns, some moving into their cars. I’m watching every penny these days. I’ve even decided to end the $ 65-a-year payment to WordPress for a customized domain name and other features. You should continue to be able to find me, hopefully.

SAD SIGNS
Some sad statistics were released in June. The Bellingham Food Bank shared at the recent CDAB meeting, the second quarter P.I.T. (Point in Time) report of the Whatcom County homeless population is at an all-time high. Also, the number of ALICE (Asset Limited, Income Constrained, Employed) families in Whatcom County has grown to almost 50%. This is a little higher than the national level.

“Over 40 percent of U.S. households are unable to afford basics, forcing them to make impossible choices and risky trade-offs every day. See how the six essential elements of a household budget — housing, child care and education, food, transportation, health care and technology — as well as taxes affect financial decision-making for ALICE families.” https://www.unitedforalice.org/

Overall, somehow, by the grace of God, I’m doing alight –knock on wood–. My tiny “temporary” one-bedroom, low-rent apartment turned out to be a Godsend. Living a mindful life, I look for the things I can be thankful for. My current list includes items I may have taken for granted 20 years ago. I am thankful for a job, a car to get to work, a place to live I can afford, supportive friends and family, and clean water to cook and bathe with.

Constant visuals remind me of the privileges I possess. Here are three recent examples. While sitting in the conference room for a department meeting last month, we all jumped at a “thud” sound against the window. The blinds to the street were closed, however, through the slits we could see a small group of people that appeared homeless were building a camp outside the building, using the awning for cover from the rain.
While in downtown Seattle for a doctor’s appointment, stopped at an intersection, I swear I witnessed a scene right out of the American post-apocalyptic horror drama “The Walking Dead” TV series. Three zombie-fied homeless folks were attempting to cross the street. None recognized the crosswalk. They muddled through, traveling their own path. One raggedy woman had a slow limp. She did not make it to the other side before the light turned green. The cars waited silently for her to cross.

Another morning, walking into the building, an elderly woman was laying next to the entrance. She was bundled up in a sleeping bag and talking to herself loudly. Our manager called the HOT (Homeless Outreach Team) to help her. The HOT team is trained to approach and assist folks in this condition. A shiver traveled down every bone in me while literately walking over the homeless to get to my job. Is it a form of survivor’s guilt?

K-DRAMAS SAVE THE DAY
A curious trend is emerging amongst my friends and co-workers. TV viewing choices are changing from American-produced programs to foreign ones. I am up to my chin in K-dramas. South Korean television series are wholesome, romantic, and somehow refreshing. A co-worker is swimming in Australian dramas. A friend of mine is enjoying the BritBox streaming channel. Are we watching foreign programming because they are more available thanks to various streaming services, or is there something else to it? I don’t know.

In 2020 I started to watch K-Dramas. Needing an escape from the pandemic stress. Wanting to be transported to a different world. K-dramas answered the call. I started with “Mr. Sunshine” originally released to US Netflix in 2018, but I did not find it until 2020. We all remember “Squid Game” (2021). Next, I found the charming “Crash Landing on You” (released in 2019). Perhaps I will share more about my interests in K-Dramas in a future post.

Below is another poem I will not publish but want to share.

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Long Kiss Goodbye
“I caught a tremendous fish and held him beside the boat half out of water, with my hook fast in a corner of his mouth. He didn’t fight. He hadn’t fought at all.”
The Fish, by Elizabeth Bishop

I row my boat out to the bay
to the edge of dark water

I caught a tremendous fish
as long as my arm

threaded a slim white rope
through bright gill, out a bony jaw

let it drag behind the boat
as I rowed back to my dock

floating above the cool depths
like a kite or a flying crow

the interrupted travel plans
the smell of its birth home fading

I see a fish on a platter
in the center of my table
garnished with onions, lemons
a cut of dill and salt
The first cut into its flakey flesh,
soft bones gently come out from hiding
between the sedimentary chunks
and gems of peppercorn

a heavy breeze blows my dinner away
brings the perfume of open white oyster shells

on a worn black top, varnished in
drained cooler water and motor oil

Crow-blue mussels bombed by seagulls
oranged beaks getting at the flesh

wait for a good rain to wash them
down between the water break rocks

At the dock a pull at the white string
is a lightning strike, epiphany wipes my mouth

The fish let loose itself from my dream
The pride of my catch
defeated by natures
desire to live

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https://www.cfr.org/timeline/us-financial-crisis

https://dailyfreepress.com/2021/03/15/generation-names-explained/