We had such hope 12 months ago,
Since 2020’s bar was low.
With open arms, we greeted you,
And wondered ’bout this year brand-new.
You brought new pleasures, day by day,
Cicadas sang their way through May.
The schools reopened, restaurants too,
While masks we purchased—quite a few.
As we emerged from quarantines,
We wept with joy to have vaccines!
True, finding them was quite a beast,
Reminding us of hunts for yeast
And toilet paper from last year.
Still, we endured, and without fear,
Began this time so gold and new,
Those weeks and months that were so few,
The hidden gem you had in store,
Those summer days of masks no more.
We hugged and laughed and ate indoors.
We saw our loved ones by the scores.
At last, we saw that tunnel light,
An end to COVID was in sight!
Except, whoops, nope, it’s just not quite.
Still, kids went off to school—hooray,
And things were mostly A-OK.
Along the way, we’ve learned a bunch.
Like how to serve a yummy brunch
And where to find home tests for free,
And how to spell…um…CDC?
We’ve filled our COVID bingo cards
With parties in our own backyards
And isolations, quarantines,
And “Why would I have bought these jeans?”
And Zooms and FaceTimes ’til we’re blue,
And testing every week or two,
And canceled plans and tests galore.
It’s good we’ve all stopped keeping score.
Much more happened, yes, it’s true.
But we’ve had just enough of you.
You’ve had your high points, ’21.
We’ve made our memories, had some fun.
We wish you well, we’re glad you came,
We’ll probably never be the same,
Now that we’ve seen the last of you,
We’ll just catch 2022.
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