Lily Goodall, Winner poetry

You canceled my Sweet 16.

You canceled my sleepovers with friends.

You took away the summer camp that was always the highlight of the season.

You took away swimming in a public pool on a sweltering day.

You took away the excitement of spending full days at the beach.

You trapped me with my obnoxious family for six months and counting.

You demolished my sleep schedule so that a full night of sleep seems outrageous.

You forced me a foreign version of my school, where I can’t focus or learn.

You took away my motivation to accomplish the simplest tasks.

You wrecked the healthy eating patterns that I know are so essential to my well-being.

You introduced me to a new lonely when I somedays barely have the energy to get out of bed.

You took advantage of our lack of preparedness and hit us relentlessly with everything you had.

Worst of all,

You killed 200,000 of us, but there are still 300 million of us.

What you don’t know Corona, is

We are stronger than you.

We are smarter than you.

We will no longer be naïve and selfish.

We will stay fervent so that others can stay alive.

We long for normality but know that the lives of the innocent come first.

We will put aside our petty inconveniences and political biases for the good of the nation.

Above all else, we know that every person deserves a chance at a full and joy-filled life. 

We now know how to rid ourselves of you, and we’re studying how to keep you from coming back.

COVID-19, you have met your match.