The second poem for the Instagram suite of poems, ‘The #tpomarquarantinepoetry Series’ was written from the following prompt:

Mourning the loss of freedom and adventure. And if you can insert a Buffy the Vampire Slayer Easter egg – given the apocalyptic nature of it all – even better.

I wouldn’t dare call the Buffy reference an ‘Easter egg’ – as it’s pretty obvious… But, hey, it fulfills the “brief” given!

‘Where Do We Go from Here?’ deals with the feeling of extreme disquiet at the thought of not being able to be free to roam the world with someone you’re infatuated/in love/in lust with. It is about how longing for postponed exploration, like a cancer or a virus, takes control over your every thought – to the detriment of even the biggest and realest of threats, such as the Coronavirus.

With no end to the lockdown in sight and fears around the possibility of the new normal extending beyond foreseen timeframes (potentially to the point of forever replacing life as we know it), fantasies can intensify beyond manageable levels, consuming our every waking hour. Whilst a little escapism goes a long way to protect us from trauma, having the pictures that fill our heads become everything to us, can in fact have the opposite intended effect: Adding more distress and psychological harm to the mix.

Aside from being part of ‘The #tpomarquarantinepoetry Series’, I consider ‘Where Do We Go from Here?’ as belonging to my suite of poems,  ‘Of Joyrides, Backseat Loving, and Road Trips’.