Return to Normal

Years from now,
when I am gone
but my lockup colleagues remain,
you will try,
through data analysis,
to formulate a question
that will help us understand
just
what happened.

You must be careful
to use your word skills:
no room for political 
policy statements
here.

What happened?
What didn’t we do?
Why were we so slow
to stop the spread,
but focussed instead,
on controlling the message.

Assigning blame allowed us
to ignore action
until
it was
far
far 
far
too late.

Let your future
give us an answer
that will not further alienate,
     will not further confuse,
but offer
some slight glimmer
of comprehension,
and of
Hope,
in an uncertain Tomorrow.