536 A.D.
“The sun gave forth its light without brightness.”
—Procopius, 6th Century
On that election night, I didn’t want to imagine
how life in America could be 536 [days] After Donald
took his seat, round & resolute at the ceremonial desk,
his blunt-tipped Sharpie in hand, ready to sign
life, as we know it, away. They say it was the worst
year in history to be alive, when in 536 A.D.,
a volcano erupted and a fog of ash engulfed Europe
to Asia. An 18-month-long eclipse, where men
grieved their shadows and prayed to the sky
for their gods not to abandon them.
The people endured 536 [days] Absent Daylight—
Wars that wouldn’t cease. Seeds of disease flourishing
among fallow fields. The death toll climbing higher
by the hour. Do you remember the refrigerated trucks,
those makeshift morgues, parked along New York streets?
It took 536 [days] After Disease paralyzed the world,
until I could visit my widowed mother. The bags
under her eyes—a steamer trunk jam-packed
with memories. Her voice cracked, hot tea spilling
details of the fall, the ventilator, the iPad goodbye.
We’ve all seen the videos of banned books burn
to ash. Will we ever learn from our history?
After bedtime stories and snuggles, I tucked
my granddaughter into her big-girl bed,
as the ‘Red Wave’ rolled in like a fog.
536 [minutes] After Doomscrolling all night,
I woke my husband, made eggs for breakfast,
sunny side up. I opened the refrigerator door,
where my world was still a crayon-drawn sun, held
by two toy letters: a blue A and a red D.
~ ~ ~
* 536 days since After Donald’s inauguration is July 9, 2026
~ ~ ~
Shawn Aveningo Sanders shares the creative life with her husband in Oregon, running The Poetry Box press. Her poems have recently appeared in Rattle, ONE ART, contemporary haibun online, Sheila-Na-Gig, Jackdaw Review, Gyroscope Review, and the award-winning anthology, Love Is for All of Us. Shawn is a multiple Pushcart Prize, Best of the Net, and Touchstone Award nominee and has won prizes from the Oregon Poetry Association. Her newest book Pockets (MoonPath Press) was a finalist in Concrete Wolf’s Chapbook Contest. When not writing, find her shopping for a new pair of red shoes or toy dinosaurs for her granddaughter, RedShoePoet.com.