Ode to My Doctors

Ode to My Doctors
© Copyright by Diana Ballinger

Look at me doctor
Really look at me please;
See the woman/wife/mother
That are all part of me!

For I'm not just the "cancer"
That you clinically treat;
But a terrified woman
Who each day her fate meets.

And I once had a job
At which I excelled.
Now my vision is gone,
My memory as well.

I struggle with tasks
That I once took in stride.
The reflection looking back from the mirror
Makes me just run and hide.

The symptoms and side effects
That are nothing to you.
Are just part of the daily horrors
My body now must go through.

So please, don't just say "that's normal"
And send me on my way;
Could you just for a moment
Walk in my shoes today??

The life I once lived Is
now gone from my sight.
You treat my cancer for a few moments
I live it day and night.

So would a smile, a reassuring word,
Or a pat on the arm
Conflict in any way with your oath
To "first do no harm?"

Diana Ballinger 7/4/08