I wrote this poem one very cold winter night a few weeks ago;

So the heat is not working in my house today
We are on it
Plumber or electrician a phone call away
Getting a space heater in the meantime
And me sitting on the couch writing this
Wearing fuzzy socks

Thinking of all the people
Cold
Hungry
Tired
Alone
Pained
With no easy solution in sight
Nothing that can be taken care of tomorrow
First thing
And a temporary fix for tonight

This is real
Horrible
Endless
Too much to process
Absorb
Understand

So I just sit here and cry
Say a prayer
For the horror to end
For all the children
The babies
The men
The women
To come home again
Real soon
Today
Where it’s warm
And the heat works

There’s food on the table
In the freezer
The pantry
The fridge

So the pain can start to go
They need to first be home
Let it be today
Not tomorrow
I can wait for a heater
They can’t
They can’t wait anymore
It’s been so long
They’ve been away
From where it’s warm
From home