Writing the Apocalypse is a weekly series featuring the poems, essays, and recollections of Puma Perl, with subject matter influenced by her experiences as a NYC resident during the COVID-19 pandemic.

Clarity | BY PUMA PERL

As the snow purifies

the streets,

my apartment turns

inward, like a cave.

Huns stride

across the screen

trampling dreams

and hobbits.

I dream in white light,

oblivious to classical antiquity

and Nubian Kingdoms.

Rolling credits wake me.

Brain blizzards rush

through my veins,

the clarity of hallucinations

comforts me,

and in the midst

of the long February storm,

all is suddenly, brilliantly,

kaleidoscopically

clear.

© puma perl, 02/03/21

Puma Perl is a poet and writer, with five solo collections in print. The most recent is Birthdays Before and After (Beyond Baroque Books, 2019.) She is the producer/creator of Puma’s Pandemonium, which brings spoken word together with rock and roll, and she performs regularly with her band Puma Perl and Friends. She’s received three New York Press Association awards in recognition of her journalism, and is the recipient of the 2016 Acker Award in the category of writing. Her most recent books can be found by clicking here.

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