Our corona diary.

[Text and photo by Kanha Prasad]

I close my eyes in my self-isolation from corona… and I see
the dial on the slow
spiral wind
at 3 instead of 5 today
2 cups of darjeeling
1 of tulsi turmeric
ginger tea. Steam
from the electric
machine
singes one of my nostrils
and the other’s airport is blocked.
Crinkled tissues
clenched together by mucus
carcasses on my bed
soldiers on my desk, crushed flags
of white surrender.
Defeated by a warm forehead
and a river of salty slurry.
I give my nose a proper
heating
cleanse it of termites and aliens.

But an unwelcome
intimate enemy
has arrived and settled
in the crook of my neck today.
its thin tentacles tickle
at the tide of my every gulp.
Before it travels downward,
must I erect
walls across my larynx,
put my lungs under lockdown?

“We the Isolationists” series urges folks from any part of the world to share a brief diary starting with “I close my eyes in my self-isolation from Corona… and I see…” Not more than 100 words. With a horizontal-sized selfie, along with your city name… please mail to me at mayankaustensoofi@gmail.com.