People complained
Computers stole the souls out
of phones and written letters.
They mourned the loss of
conversation, face to face communication, coffee or milkshakes after class,
cocktail parties before or after shows.
Then we crawled inside our
caves, locked the doors and pulled up the welcome mats, waving at neighbours
from behind closed windows and mask-fogged glasses.
All the complaints, from those
who whined but didn’t change, turned into paeans of praise for the schools,
jobs, houses of worship, and doctors who adapted those computers into
lifelines. Phones and monitors keeping us connected, phones and keyboards
helping us shop for our needed goods.
But the connection I cherish
the most is the blessed intimacy of live streams and Zooms, connecting me to
friends and performances that I would have never known before the separations
of the last two years. Without technology, we would have been truly alone in
the silent darkness; no music, no pictures, no messages, no jokes, and no
warmth of friends joined together from states apart.
Eventually, we will be joyously
released, but I hope we never lose the blessed intimacy of long-distances music
and friends
Ronda R.
Scott-Marak
© 28 December 2021
