The Ballad Of Covid 19 Poem by Mary Champion

It started out in China -
thus Wuhan earned its fame.
So many of us sickened
When Covid 19 came.

At first we didn't worry,
It was all so far away,
But we were too complacent -
such a price we had to pay.

From Bergamo in Italy
it spread both far and wide.
We watched with growing horror
as thousands of us died.

Stung at last to action,
the government decreed
that we should lockdown everything
we didn't really need.

We suddenly discovered
‘twas those we valued least
we needed when the chips were down
and finally perceived

the dustman, drivers, carers,
the supermarket staff
were on the front line working
on everyone's behalf.

Ev'ry Thursday ev'ning
we stood at our front doors
to clap and cheer the NHS
but all that fine applause

won't make up for the meagre rise
in income that they got.
We're still too mean to pay the tax
that might improve their lot.

Those who could not work at home
and had no work outside
were mostly placed on furlough
as society half died.

Children must be schooled at home,
in theory at least,
but that worked out much better
for the privileged and rich.

 
No fun, no socialising,
just chatting over Zoom.
The younger generations
were hardest hit with gloom.

But, after months of misery,
a ray of light was seen,
Science came to rescue us
with magical vaccines.

Now many in the wealthy West
are double jabbed and things
are getting more like normal
apart from masks and pings.

Still the battle rages,
for most the world remains
fully unprotected
and many novel strains

of the virus keep appearing
to complicate our plight.
But that's how evolution works -
thus proving Darwin right.

Endangered by this virus
and global warming too
you'd think we would be humbled,
you'd think we'd change our view -

accept our limitations -
you'd think we would conclude
we can't beat Mother Nature
when she's in destructive mood.

But still we all prevaricate
and waste our precious time
our main concern, as always,
is the blesséd bottom line.