The New Normal

There is a bend in the road.
The ground keeps shifting.
Dotted lines, painted and repainted,
appear—like a guide map to the unknown.
Are we there yet?
We are all in a state of impatient pause—
the lock downs,
the staying in,
the pacing and circling within our own minds.
Red means stop.
Green means go.
The road is now empty.
We follow the rules,
as they change from day to day.
The sky is a mottled grey, one moment—
then blue and sun-streaked, the next.
The road home leads to the you
you’ve kept hidden,
beneath a well-dressed exterior—
the you that is served up to guests.
All roads now lead us back to each other.
The new normal
will not be normal at all,
but perhaps we will be real—
for the first time
in this brave, new world.