Two years have passed since I stopped looking at the news

No more surfing the news network websites

TV news networks no longer illuminate my retina

The world has changed so much since I abandoned the news

The news lives on seeking daily sensations

To keep its audience in shock and awe

Nobody clings to boring old good news stories

Sheltering from the news improves your mental heath

The pandemic came with all its woes

We sheltered in place then went out masked and vaccinated 

Sadly no vaccine protects Ukrainians against Russian army aggressors

Does the news miss me more than I miss the news

Talking to family and friends has become my new window into the world

Be it phone calls or via Zoom

Whats App or just a text

Even better face to face

People watching has become my favorite pastime 

Sipping hot tea at a pavement cafe

Some folks dashing to or from work

Others rushing to meet their kids from school

I pull out my laptop 

Waiting for inspiration

Young lovers go by hand in hand

Words skip across my page

Cyclists scatter as an ambulance screams by

Flashbacks to my previous life as a first responder

I wonder if they will find a sick or injured person

Tap tap tap on my keyboard

A young mother walking as she grips the hand of her young boy

What kind of world will the grow up in

Todays news will be rewritten into his future history books

I write the news now