before daybreak
I hadn’t realized
it was a moonless night
until hours later sitting
by the bedside
rewrapping my arm
local media announce
half the city is gone
but according to
my own personal math
they’re not even close
in the other room
a candle starts to flicker
and like a man in a trance
I start counting the hours
before daybreak
september two thousand twenty
copyright j matthew waters
all rights reserved
jdubqca 
Simple yet poignant.
thank you, friend
This was deep and thought-provoking
Thank you for the visiting and few of my poem tonight and commenting on this piece, Padmini. I hope you and yours are safe and sound.
Yes, we are doing ok. Thank you so much. My 5-year old child just recovered from flu. Even something like flu is scary nowadays as it’s symptoms are similar to the pandemic.