Conspiracy theories abounded, of course.
In public buildings and on streets,
fear, anger, and desperation demanded
what most of us did not. Some,
lawless or careless, heedless of safety,
menaced or (worse) endangered
without the courtesy of a threat.
The gentler forms of violence prevailed,
though: shoppers who brushed against us
in the aisles, beach-partiers (heads buried
firmly in the sand), and unprotected
customers who leaned in close to walk-up
windows to order take-out meals.
All these things (and more) left us bemused,
in the midst of months like these,
wondering: What were they hiding behind
those masks they would not wear?
© 2020 by Hannah Six
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