Second Wave

Touch has been circulated in these times of touch me not and news only travelling for the battle of breathing. Our love could never be expressed in hugs or kissing but a wave with restrictions and levels. Human communication vanished with the harsh passing of gentleness, emotion, love and understanding. Our experience brought the regular hand washing and sanitation of our hands with the right amount of measured alcohol. Along with the restrictions and change of levels, alternating like a movie played with the pause and play buttons. The covering of our faces with masks and keeping a safe distance came to play. These was a wave promised to only last for days, but months passed, and the hard reality faced us that we lose our loved ones quicker than we would lose pests to a fumigated place. This wave brought along the reality of six feet social distance and a time for hope that the end will soon come. We hoped for survival as the restrictions eased. But to our reality, the truth to the announcement was never an introduction of the other wave while the touch me not movement continued. “We lost too much already”. Something was missing, the streets were empty and our hospitals full of patience only visible to those who attend to them. Are they fed? Are they well taken care of? Will they survive? The soul longed to see those who were lying on hospital beds with phone calls to their memory as they served their last days on earth. Poet Masego Nkuna