NaBloPoMo 2021
I cannot help but feel, to some extent, helpless
In the face of your aggressive disease process
Since you were afflicted all of a sudden
You hope for recovery, the full scope of the illness hidden
From your eyes, and your comprehension
You don’t get sick easily, so you envision
A short course of symptoms, that would go away
With a simple drug, or procedure, soon you would be on your way
To feeling better, you lead a healthy lifestyle after all
This is merely a stumbling block, you don’t expect to fall
I see that hope in you, if only the same I could share!
Having treated this condition, I am painfully aware
That in the next few minutes your optimism I shall crash
No matter how I word it, your hopes would be dashed
*
I do this often enough, usually detached I remain
From the patient’s emotions, to stay calm and sane
But sometimes the buoyant optimism of a patient
My carefully practiced equanimity threatens
If only, somehow I had a magic one step cure
I wish a miracle drug I could conjure..
Then I remind myself- that is an audacious thought
I am a student of science, a magician or messiah I am not
This disease has no cure, but I can offer relief
I can always try to comfort, that’s my firm belief
So I explain the disease and its prognosis, in an empathetic voice
To encourage shared decision-making, I go through each available choice
*
There are days when I feel invincible at work, and then
There are days like this that remind me I am a mere human
With a special skill, not a gift divine
As I treat my patients, I must keep that in mind
Passion...unbridled 