My backyard doesn’t have lights, so I pace back and forth in near darkness. My vegetable garden is a shapely shadow pumping out the aroma of fresh cucumber and tomato. From the back door of my house and all the way across the yard to my garage, I trek to and fro. I ponder the sirens, and my neighbors fear of possible home invasions due to the ongoing socio-political uprisings that we’ve seen and can hear. All this happening during an ongoing pandemic.

In the shadow of my backyard, I simmer in a widely publicized and debated quarantine. In moments of stress, when my kid is finally asleep, and my wife rests beside her upstairs, I finally get a chance to focus on my own thoughts. Hence, I’m outside, quietly pacing around the yard.