“Like Noah...” by Alicia Van Riggs

Like Noah standing on the deck,

I check the AirNow app

the dove doesn’t leave my hand

the dial in purple, red,

the olive branch an insult

The future rainbow, double cruel.  

And,

as we have no need to shade our eyes

while we breathe the sour damp inside an N95,

we still scan the horizon for each other,

heartbeats a Morse code,

Arks afloat, nonetheless.