This is based on a true story. For the young man who never left ICU. RIP <3
I passed by your bed
and wondered your story,
Tattoos and T-shirt
completely out of place
amongst the tubes and wires.
With arms so thin and eyes so tired,
watching the TV without seeing,
seeing me without watching
every time I passed through.
Watching you waiting…
I knew. Did you?
Did she know too?
I watched her pass through, with
rucksack and thermos, packets of snacks.
All the signs of the long term
traveller of wards and waiting rooms.
Holding herself together with
the busy brightness of a mother's love.
Others passed by too.
I saw them take turns
to hold your hand as you waited, and passed them
as they waited, in crooked huddles
over half cups of coffee.
Women talking; a man hiding
tears in a corner, as I passed through.
And I knew they knew too.
Though none of us spoke
in passing, in waiting.
Connected in such disconnection.
Brief greetings and smiles
in hallways, in passing,
and then they were gone.
Empty chairs.
Empty bed.
I passed by your bed
and wondered your story,
and wished you
safe journeys
in passing.
Beautifully written with feeling and empathy...my husband was in a hospice for the last seven weeks of his life, and as daily visitors we observed and wondered...a young mother with three children came in, and sadly after a short stay..passed away...
"brief greetings and smiles in hallways, in passing, and then they were gone. Empty chairs
Empty bed...."
Best wishes,
Diana...
Reviewed by Diana Legun (Reader)
Reviewed on March 24, 2014
You have delivered well in this poem. Your empathy, wrapped in compassion, is expressed in the most delicate of verse, so full of detail and feeling. Reading "In Passing," felt like seeing a single-line drawing that contained exactly the amount of detail to touch the human soul. ~~ Diana
So poignant. You make me wonder about the tattoos and think about the time, last year, when the nurses confided discreetly out of my earshot to my helpers that it was likely that I "wouldn't make it." Fortunately, I awoke in ICU breathing on my own without a ventilator, unthinkable after lung surgery like mine. Perhaps it was because I didn't have tattoos?
Your words are so true, however sad this may be. My mother laid in a hospital room for 17 days and nights before she passed. So many walked by. She was an amazing soul. I hope others wondered about her as well.
This moves me with the sadness. I can relate to your feelings as my dad was in the hospital for 9 days before he passed away. Watching him waiting was heartbreaking.
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"brief greetings and smiles in hallways, in passing, and then they were gone. Empty chairs
Empty bed...."
Best wishes,
Diana...
Ron
Kathy
Sandie
budd