All tagged nurse
I remember him, but not his name; stoic, a keen intellect, just shy of government-sanctioned retirement age. A mountain of hospital bills added to the depression he was being treated for.
I lay on the narrow table, left arm bent over my head, hospital gown open to expose my left side. The biopsy was over.
My bare knees on the rough sidewalk, my hand to his shoulder, I’m shouting, “Hey mister, take a breath!”
“You look very good,” she said, patting my arm. “I’m sorry,” I said. “Do I know you?”
She came out crying, holding her right arm. To my untrained eye, nothing seemed broken.
Resisting the urge to peek at my defined abdominal muscles, I ripped an oily chip into quarters and apprehensively put a piece in my mouth, taking a deep breath.
And I just sent an email praising my coworkers for making it the first few weeks with no cases.