Thursday Night

A Poem by Natasha Hubatsek

With a reading by the author

The world is quiet now.
it is quiet all the time now. But you know
that everyone is in doors
trying to find something, to uncover
something. Everyone is in doors
weeping and cooking and yelling
at the TV. Everyone is in doors,
studying and working or
worrying about studying or
worrying about working. Everyone
is indoors checking Facebook.
wondering–
am I alone?
what is everyone else doing?

Everyone is in doors hugging,
kissing, loving their mothers and fathers,
their parents, their sisters, their grandmothers.
everyone is in doors scared and
looking down, pacing and lashing.
hating and wondering,
wondering,
wondering.
am I alone?
Everyone is in doors.
in doors
in their doors.
standing on their first step.
on the brink of walking out into
the world.
some holding cigarettes
some notebooks
paint brushes
pencils
flowers
masks
nothing – just staring into space.

And some people are out doors
they are working
and we are clapping
cheering
Roaring
for them in this house-
apartment-thing
on hicks street.
we are opening the window
our heads staring out like
this is the first time we have
felt the light in days.
and my dog is barking and
my dad is clapping in the
kitchen with cauliflower in his
hands and my mom is
clapping, clap, clapping away in
her green shirt.

And we are all in doors
screaming
saying, “thank you”
saying, “I see you”
saying “we are here”
saying “you are not alone”