With the masses huddled in their homes
Communicating by video and iPhones
Neighbors on lawn chairs; six foot spread
Passing time bantering; contemplating the dead
Little children perched by window sill
Peering at an idle world; so many ill
Busy sidewalks once crisscrossed the city
Now lonely lanes; desolate or empty
20 million pondering their plight
Out of work; perhaps out of fight
Amidst the dismal confluence of circumstance
The overlooked souls who give us a chance
EMT’s and nurses and laboratory technicians
Hospital service workers, and ER physicians
Grocery store staff and the delivery drivers
Policemen and the folks who put out the fires
Immigrant meat packers and transit workers
Telephone lineman and sanitation collectors
The unsung supporters of basic existence
They tempt the virus absent resistance
No OSHA proscription and no protection
Too many of them have died from infection
History will reflect and lay out the blame
Yet, tempered by loss, we will not be the same
In case we forget let’s make it quite clear
We owe some souls who checked their fear
They are the voiceless; the little guys
Invisible workers who risked their lives
May they find appreciation in a post virus day
May their employers consider raising their pay
May their jobs become safer and more secure
May dignity grace them on the factory floor
And for now; this fleeting moment in time
Just one single line; one without rhyme
“Thank you for your service.”