A poem about funerals during the COVID-19 pandemic.

There was no black and yellow tape 
So they searched the office drawers
And found brown  
Which would seal parcels 
But not stick to carpet 
Scuffed, edged with dust, lines 
To keep us safe, far apart 
As we control our tears  
On chairs ranged coldly  
Ten of them 
For ten stiff soldiers 
Alert to the war 
Around us 
A war to save lives 
Tearing us apart in the face of grief and death 

Stella Wiseman