Vespers

I miss two things that comprised a big part of my life: our cabin retreat and, yes, my ER work. Simply put, they balanced each other.

Someday, we hope to reestablish a cabin life. And if anyone can create an ER without stress, rotating shifts, and weekends, I'm your person.



Vespers


A ten-year-old girl covered with hives

                    Miles into midnight countryside

Wheezing hard, unable to speak
Blood pressure levels slipping fast

                    Winter solstice weather
                     Crystalline and cold

In the ER a dance of rescue unfolds
Drugs slam home, infuse, relax

                    The wrap of blackness broken
                    Beneath a billion star sky

Breathing slower, a faint smile: good signs

                     Looking up, we feel almost divine.



Marilyn Aschoff Mellor