Worth the Mask

laying on my bed
with thoughts of dying
no…
not suicide
simply dying
giving my spirit back to
God
i have company
my dog
he lays next to me
he does not move
perhaps he thinks
of dying as well
new restrictions
but nothing works
liberty failed
pandemic
abundance of caution
sheep
wolves
shepherds
which one am I
none
one cannot protect
if no one will not…
will not…what
want that protection
my protection or
the wolfs false protection
cannot fight the mask
she wants it more
more than liberty
death is preferred
to the agony of seeing
loved ones led to
a slaughter
quiet is the room
now
quiet is the broken
soul
as it fades
that
even my dog
faithful companion
has left my side
for
death is not his
thought and he
leads the way
for such is the
struggle
of living in the
now
and that now
is no longer
worth it or
worth the mask