Poemattic: Poetry and Art for the Soul

I wonder what will be the first line under the title:

The Year Was 2020 twenty years from now.

I remember reading history textbooks with similar reveals

and always wondered if all that was printed was real.

Today we do not know

what is fake or not

Forced to look under so much rot.

It is funny how certain quotes and headlines stick;

The following are some of my picks

past and present from Presidents,

headlines and ordinary people speaking out,

What in the world is this craziness about?

“Mankind must put an end to war before war puts an end to mankind.” – John Fitzgerald Kennedy

“A president’s hardest task is not to do what is right, but to know what is right.” – Lyndon B. Johnson

“‘My Twitter has become so powerful that I can actually make my enemies tell the truth.” – Guess who again.

“Civility is not a tactic or a sentiment. It is the determined choice of trust over cynicism, of community over chaos.” -George Bush

“Profits and Pride at Stake, the Race for a Vaccine Intensifies” – NYT

“Italy’s Prime Minister Giuseppe Conte announced a nationwide lockdown in the country after it had become the second-worst hit country by the virus besides China.” – The Insider

“In late February of 2020, The World Health Organization increased its risk assessment of the novel coronavirus to its highest level. ” Local paper

“March 24: The 2020 Summer Olympics, which were supposed to take place in Tokyo, are postponed until 2021.”

“News of Bryant’s death sent shockwaves across Los Angeles and around the world. ” All Newspapers

“Shortly after Iran launched an attack on US troops stationed at Iraqi military bases, Ukraine International Airlines Flight 752 crashed in Tehran, Iran, on January 8, killing all 176 people on board.” NYT

“This is not a partisan debate; it is a human one. Clean air and water, and a livable climate are inalienable human rights. And solving this crisis is not a question of politics. It is our moral obligation.” — Leonardo DiCaprio

“Adults keep saying we owe it to the young people, to give them hope, but I don’t want your hope. I don’t want you to be hopeful. I want you to panic. I want you to feel the fear I feel every day. I want you to act. I want you to act as you would in a crisis. I want you to act as if the house is on fire, because it is.” –Greta Thunberg, 16 year-old Swedish Activist

We will remember so many things that happened in 2020 thus far.

But what will future generations have to say?

Will they be shocked or surprised?

I always remember – The Year was 1970

Students killed in anti-war rallies.

Jimmy Hendricks died.

And Marvin Gaye recorded, “What’s going on?”

A first class stamp was only 6 cents.

Some things may sound familiar.

No matter what we remember,

or desperately try to forget about the year 2020

We must not forget its lessons.

Stay safe my friends!