Story Submitted by Lori Smith

Five Sentence story on what it’s like to Shelter-in-place in a Pandemic

  1. I watch the news and see the death numbers rise and the curve ascending.
  2. These four walls entomb me with my idleness.
  3. It’s a waiting game in this prison of laundry, cooking and cleaning, frayed nerves, and to-do list that lies in wait.
  4. I burst outside to walk up the street and hear the birds sing, see the lizards pretending to not be there as I glide by, see the Live Oak leaves sway and feel the mosquitoes bite.
  5. I turn into my garden where bees are pollinating, a pair of cardinals tussle, butterflies flutter through, and the fountain’s trickle soothes and all is well with the world.