How do I keep sane during a pandemic?
I worship the sun
and the honey yellow
of summer and smell
lamp chops roasting
with white beans.
I listen to Miles Davis,
skip rope, and dance
with the cranes
in the field
behind my house.
I no longer tiptoe
to keep from waking
my dog; I need her
wild barkiness
and happy tongue
on my nose and ears.
Jeffrey Johannes, Port Edwards, is an artist and poet. He won the 2012 Hal Grutzmacher poetry award sponsored by Peninsula Pulse. He co-edited the 2012 Wisconsin Poets’ Calendar and the Winter 2019 Bramble with his wife Joan.
Portage Magazine 