You’d think I’d be
accustomed to this,
my old nemesis:
the surgeon’s blade.
It’s not as though we’re
unacquainted,
after all;
no, we’re many times met
in the years of my life.
but as my flesh
grows frail, it becomes
more than ever
precious to me.
Well I know
this human life extends
precisely as long
as each next breath.
Breath:
gift of life
I do not care to lose,
even for those brief
few heartbeats
between sudden
deadly sleep
and the plastic tube
jammed down the throat
that links the body
again to breath…
to life.
I find I crave
each precious breath
remaining to me
in this life;
no more forsworn
to the surgeon’s knife!
And so –
because I must –
I have chosen
this one last time
to submit my flesh
to the scalpel’s blade.
But not again.
Not again.
*****
Date of Surgery: May 15, 2013
Surgery Outcome: Successful
Surgical Technique Outcome: Undetermined, as yet
Healing Plan: Rest, healthy food, exercise, meditation, prayer
Namaste,
Susannah
Susannah Hay 