Image source: Unsplash
by Jeana Schafer
An Ode to Recovery
As the sun creeps down
And melts into the horizon
In a glorious orange haze,
Do you feel the night approaching;
The end of your breaths
And smiles
And laughter
That you once shared with your loved ones?
Will you let me give you care?
If I can give you more time,
To say goodbye
Or, perhaps even,
To live another lifetime,
Will you fight?
As the sun rises up,
And floats high in the sky,
A bright orb among the brilliant blue,
Do you feel the new day;
Another set of breaths
And smiles
And laughter
To again share with your loved ones?
I can feel it in your farewell,
As they wheel you down the hall
To the cacophony of applause,
That you have no regrets.
Thank you for fighting,
For giving yourself another chance
When we knew that,
Working together,
Your life was far from over.
Do you feel the joy around you
With all of your loved ones,
Their smiles,
And laughter
That you continue to share?
An Ode to Loss
In the good times we share
The smiles that break across our cheeks
Our laughter floating through the air,
Can you hear my heart fluttering
Over the roar of our joy,
Or the melody of our chatter
Late into the night?
I study medicine to save lives,
But away some are taken;
That final fall of their chest
Signaling their last breath.
Death is inevitable.
In the sad times we share
The tears that break across our cheeks
Our sobs trudging through the air,
Can you hear my heart breaking
Over the roar of the flat line
Or the melody of the silence
Late into the night?
Death is inevitable...
I knew one day it would come.
I hoped that all this time spent
Learning how to heal,
I could have healed you.
But now I am here.
And you are gone.
And all I have left is this feeling
That you should be here,
And that I should have saved you.
But physicians are not gods.
We are people, too.
And for us, just like you,
Death is inevitable.
Jeana Schafer is a second-year medical student at the UTCOMLS.
