"Now in My Little Office"
Submitted by Cheryl L. Caesar
Now in my little office
on Farm Lane and Auditorium Road,
there are no barnyard sounds, nothing audible.
No cars and no passing cries. The traffic light
does not intone, “Walk sign is AH-ah-on
the cross,” every thirty seconds. My neighbor
to the left does not clomp by
in her tall boots. The guy
on the right no longer buzzes
like a giant bee and clears his basso throat.
It’s just me,
the clock and the heater
now. I have spent my life
searching for a quieter place. The cork-
lined study of Proust. A cabin
in the woods. An abbey retreat. A lover
once said to me: if ever
you find your ultimate quiet, beware:
the creak of your muscles, the groan
of your organs, the very beat
of your heart will drive you mad.
In our second installation of “Living Through Science Fiction: True Stories from the COVID-19 Crisis”, Planet Scumm tackles the feeling of isolation that runs through day-to-day existence.