The society

in which I live

has propagated a myth,

a myth so powerful

that fortunes, industries,

even countries

have risen and fallen

based upon its premise

of solitary freedom.

‘I am free to do as I choose’

The counterbalance

of responsibilities

were ignored, abhorred or forgotten

in the headlong plunge.

Along comes a pandemic

that proves

that my actions always

affect others.

Yet, despite two years

of lockdowns,

disruptions and disconnection,

the myth

has deep roots,

so facts that ‘I do not believe’

continue to be ignored.

Humanity has been given

a golden opportunity

to grasp the power

of our connection

in community

where we are each held,

strengthened and loved

to be all that we can be.

Then we can prove

the dictum:

‘we are each angels

with one wing

and it is only when

we embrace each other

that we can fly’.

What of the myth?

Do not think it will just disappear.

We each have a responsibility

to denounce it,

to live its converse,

showing the myth to be

the destructive lie

that it is.