Life in the Time of Corona Detail for Emerald Coast Writers

The Earth Lives On

Ethan McGuire

A star burns hot in the universe.
Ninety-three million miles away,
a lively planet slowly circles:
The Earth, and the Earth lives on.

Men scar the Earth’s complexion, building
ziggurats, pyramids, Babel,
steel skyscrapers, reaching fingers.
The Earth sighs; man’s work crumbles.

Men assemble machines for pleasures.
Men steer machines to kill others,
shooting through the sky, exploding.
The Earth breathes and brings a calm.

Men lift kind populists to power,
and populists aid their people,
but corruption’s rot ever creeps.
The Earth rules to heal the rot.

Authoritarians convince men,
convince people of their power,
erecting bold statues to boast.
The Earth waits; the statues fall.

Populations grow, intermingle.
Viruses put fires to countries;
the fires spread fast through continents.
The Earth brings rain to the flames.

Women birth men; men live, and men die.
Women give birth to men again.
Man is haughty, and he is strong.
The Earth, she spins forever.

Life in the Time of Corona

Within weeks after March 11, 2020 World Health Organization’s declaration of COVID-19 as a pandemic, West Florida Literary Federation offered its writers a catharsis. By April, regional writers were submitting words and images to preserve this time in history. The ongoing project began with Phase I, a special edition of The Legend published in May. It featured more than thirty juried submissions. Life in the Time of Corona continues with Phase II, updated as submissions are accepted. Here are the voices of health care workers, poets, essayists, historians, and the images of artists and photographers, documenting this time in Northwest Florida's history. The ongoing project ends with the advent of a vaccine or declaration by the World Health Organization.

Life in the Time of Corona Detail for Emerald Coast Writers

The Earth Lives On

The Earth Lives On

Life in the Time of Corona

CONTENTS

Photo Essay

Prose

Poetry

Short Fiction

The Legend