Abstract
“You are not welcome here,” she told Him
The first time He came.
And so she fought Him
With scalpels and machines.
“We are still not ready,” she lamented
The next time He came.
And so she resisted Him
With antibiotics and plastic tubes.
“We need more time,” she whispered
When He came again.
And so she pleaded with her beloved
Not to leave.
“I don't want him to suffer,” she decided
When He seemed to have forgotten them.
And so she invited Him back
With neon green paper, taped to the refrigerator.
“We waited too long,” she worried
When her beloved lost his spirit.
And so she called to Him,
With morphine and bittersweet hope.
“Come back!” she wailed
When He still didn't come.
And so she suffered, too,
With tears and guilt.
“It's okay to go,” she told her beloved
When he seemed to hold on for her sake.
And so she waited,
With love.
It was suddenly silent
When Death finally came.
And so our beloved
Greeted Him as an old friend.
