Three Poems

By Andrea Nicki

Quarantine: December 21, 2020

The world sits under a huge dome
with all its belongings
as the year descends into the darkest day,
people at home reflecting on their lives,
light and shadows cast,
dreaming of new pursuits,
harking back to ancient times, torch-lit caves,
humans braving the cold and dark,
low ceilings, narrow passage ways,
paintings of hand stencils, finger meanders,
triangles, circles, spirals,
bison, deer, humans dancing.

Botanical Gardens

The luxurious autumnal carpet
does not disperse from anyone’s step
and the giant sequoias invite all to stand under in the peace.
It does not matter if you are more or less alone.
If painful memories and feelings surface
with the ducks dabbling their bills in the water,
small streams continue to gurgle—
never a stony silence.

Ducks

A Bufflehead grooms himself
amidst a family of Mallards near a pond.
They don’t mind that his white mask
has slipped around the back of his head
or that he has touched the water lilies.

I am a Canadian poet and applied health ethicist based in Vancouver, BC, Canada.  I have three poetry books published on social and environmental issues. My website is www.andreanicki.com.

I am a full-time lecturer in ethical leadership. The transition to online teaching, working from home, and restricted social contact forced a deep self-assessment and assessment of my relationships and activities, leading me to live and write more authentically. I have been pursuing more activities that I love and doing more nature walks and expressive dance, which inform my poetry writing.