BANTER

 BANTER

Sorting through my papers

The other day

I found a receipt 

Dated March 6, 2020

For $119.54 

Including tip

From a restaurant

In Forest Hills

Called Banter

Which closed a 

Few months ago

Back in March 2020 

I had dinner in Banter

With a close friend

And my son

The restaurant was full

Lively

We were already aware of the

Coronavirus 

Yet we still hadn't  processed

The effects it would have 

On our Lives

Although there was a 

Huge bottle of hand sanitizer available

No one wore masks

No one socially distanced

Somehow we imagined

It would be contained

As if by magic

No need to worry

No need to fear

We ate freely

We talked loudly

Were we delusional

Or simply naive?

A few weeks later

NYC closed its schools

Ambulances could be heard 

In my neighborhood

Wailing all day

All night

Outside our local hospital 

A refrigerator truck  was parked

To handle all the dead bodies

Ordinary evenings like the ones

We shared in Banter 

Would seem like something 

From a distant past