Tradition

MALLORY YOUNG

April 12, 2020

Are there well worn rituals for a quarantine?

Is it like Yom Kippur where you visit virtually

all your friends and family and anyone you’ve seen

and ask them for forgiveness, make amends?

Or is it closer to Thanksgiving, picking up the theme

of gratitude, seated round the table (via Zoom),

everyone revealing what they treasure most

within the limits sanctioned by the host?

Will it be an annual event, with special food

and awful wine, the parsley, for remembrance, dipped in brine?

In any case, the bread won’t be unleavened.

No one’s getting ready for a quick escape:

sheltered in safety while the daylight dies, 

sitting, watching, waiting for the dough to rise.

MALLORY YOUNG is an English professor at Tarleton State University. Most of her recent publications focus on women’s literature and popular culture.