For over four years I worked at a newspaper in Tooele County, a rural desert county in Utah. I had a coworker once say the county is a collection of almosts—it could be almost a fantastic hiking
...
[+]
Empty streets, forgotten buildings
Haunted by the ghosts of normality
Whispering of a time
Before
Is a dream
When hands were held, stores filled
Smiles not covered
Fear not embedded in minds
Tired minds
Terrified minds
Twisted and turned minds
Now
Is a loud scream, it is not a whisper
Not a breath, but a roar
Something that cannot be ignored
Friendly faces turned into strangers by masks
Six feet away
An uncrossable ocean
After
After is a question mark
Far off
A mirage in the distance
Shimmering and waving and changing form
We know nothing will ever be the same
Yet we wish for a time
Before.
9