deepundergroundpoetry.com
Myself the Patient
Please sit up and lean forward, that’s it
It’s only a tiny pinch in the back, shh
I must stay completely still, don't move
Explosions of electric white fire agony
dying between one breath and the next
completely under, unaware of falling
Beep..beep...murmured voices
sharp antiseptic scents, muted cries
Time to determine if I'm still alive
It's not the first time, I've got a system
Absolutely foolproof, I know better
then any nurse or doctor ever could
My name is Echo, I live in New Jersey
with my husband and our children
Today is Thursday, Biden’s President
I see darkness, hear underwater
feel frozen, under sandpaper sheets
I swallow, taste dryness and metal
Twitch each finger, good, they work
Wiggle my toes, flex my feet - no
No this hurts, oh God please, please, please
Shh, Echo, it’s okay, let’s give you some…
Just Inhale, exhale, ice in my veins
followed with sweet, sweet oblivion
It’s only a tiny pinch in the back, shh
I must stay completely still, don't move
Explosions of electric white fire agony
dying between one breath and the next
completely under, unaware of falling
Beep..beep...murmured voices
sharp antiseptic scents, muted cries
Time to determine if I'm still alive
It's not the first time, I've got a system
Absolutely foolproof, I know better
then any nurse or doctor ever could
My name is Echo, I live in New Jersey
with my husband and our children
Today is Thursday, Biden’s President
I see darkness, hear underwater
feel frozen, under sandpaper sheets
I swallow, taste dryness and metal
Twitch each finger, good, they work
Wiggle my toes, flex my feet - no
No this hurts, oh God please, please, please
Shh, Echo, it’s okay, let’s give you some…
Just Inhale, exhale, ice in my veins
followed with sweet, sweet oblivion
Published 10th Jun 2022
Author's Note
In December 2021, I had my right knee completely replaced. In April, I had the left one operated on. In early May, I found out I had dislocated my left patella and had been attempting to walk on it. I am still recovering from the surgery to replace the patella and the incision made alongside it so it wouldn't dislocate again. Three major yet similar surgeries - the only similarity of experience was that they all took place on Thursdays. The potential start of unpacking those experiences in poem and possibly letter form.
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