I hope you enjoyed your (hopefully virtual) cherry blossom viewing. Congratulations to last week’s contributors:

Powered by… Mister Linky’s Magical Widgets.

Onward!

It’s all over the media. It’s on our minds. It’s in our collective lives. Whether we’re sick from it or not, the Coronavirus (covid-19) pandemic is here.

Coronavirus disease (COVID-19) is an infectious disease caused by a newly discovered coronavirus.

Most people infected with the COVID-19 virus will experience mild to moderate respiratory illness and recover without requiring special treatment.  Older people, and those with underlying medical problems like cardiovascular disease, diabetes, chronic respiratory disease, and cancer are more likely to develop serious illness.

The best way to prevent and slow down transmission is be well informed about the COVID-19 virus, the disease it causes and how it spreads. Protect yourself and others from infection by washing your hands or using an alcohol based rub frequently and not touching your face. 

The COVID-19 virus spreads primarily through droplets of saliva or discharge from the nose when an infected person coughs or sneezes, so it’s important that you also practice respiratory etiquette (for example, by coughing into a flexed elbow).

At this time, there are no specific vaccines or treatments for COVID-19. However, there are many ongoing clinical trials evaluating potential treatments. WHO will continue to provide updated information as soon as clinical findings become available.

World Health Organization

Honestly, I had considered not posting about it. Living in New York, the epicenter of the US outbreak, I’ve endured enough coverage of it. My family and survived the first week of social isolation, leaving only to walk the neighborhood. Mira and I lived through our first work-from-home experience, and Fank, his first remote learning one. What would be the point of calling for haikai poetry about Corona?

But haikai is a poetry of the present. Writing haikai is an incarnation of presence, of what’s happening now. What kind of haijin could I call myself if I didn’t embrace the present moment–even one as devastating as this?

Therefore, this week our unconventional kigo is coronavirus (covid-19). Take any angle you like on the virus: anxiety, frustration, hope. Remember, we’re all going through this together, whatever our particular experience with the pandemic is.

Write the haikai poem of your choice (haiku, senryu, haibun, tanka, haiga, renga, etc.) that alludes to coronavirus (covid-19).

As always:

Here’s how the challenge works:

1. write the haikai poem of your choice.
2. post the link of your post to Mister Linky.
3. pingback by posting the link to the challenge on your site.
4. read and comment on other contributors’ posts.

Let’s write through this pandemic together, haijin! Stay healthy, and safe!