Am I Essential?
Am I essential? / A med student waiting for change, / inundated with facts and figures. / Am I just in the way?
Poetry Thursdays
Poetry Thursdays is our initiative to highlight poetry and prose by medical students, with a new post every Thursday. If you are interested in contributing or would like to learn more, please contact our editors.
Contributing Writer
Florida State University College of Medicine
Matthew is a fourth year medical student at Florida State University College of Medicine in Daytona Beach, Florida class of 2021. In 2016, he graduated from Florida State University with a Bachelor of Science in biochemistry. He enjoys surfing, playing guitar, and learning Spanish in his free time. After graduating medical school, Matthew would like to pursue a career in Emergency Medicine.
It’s A Lot
I agree that protesting is best done in peace, / But wasn’t that tried by taking a knee? / Or hashtags that said Black Lives Matter, / And praying that change would come with the chatter.
I Stand
I stand for justice and peace; / I stand for equity alongside equality. / I stand until the hate crimes cease.
Empty Hands
Tonight, there are families who will go to bed / Without having eaten dinner. They will slip / Through sheets of faded blue, stained with
So-So
“I still feel the same,” she says / after three weeks of ECT. / Monday / Wednesday / Friday —
Thank You
We’re now all online / but you’re still in person. / As things progress / they just seem to worsen.
The Autopsy Report of Mr. George Floyd
Pressed for time, the report shall be quick to conclude: For eight minutes and forty-six seconds, Mr. Floyd could not breathe with a knee on his neck, and thus met his untimely, unconscionable death.
Blackberries
She came alone / Messy auburn hair with curls flowing / Tiny and silent / Taking up a third of the bed
Isolation Treatment
I am okay being alone; it’s not hard to do. / For other people, they can’t do it as if they were left scarred anew. / The trick is to keep your mind busy.
Frontline
Mask on. / Your own protective prison / the air is stale but clean, you hope.
Tomorrow
They did not want to disclose that I was dying. Out of respect for my family’s wishes, my cultural values and ultimately myself. But they forgot to respect my right to know, my right to choose which way to go, my right to see tomorrow and the fading of the sunset glow.
In My Place
Congratulations, you finally made it! / You pushed past when you wanted to quit. / White coat in hand, smile on your face, / I’m sorry to tell you that medicine will put you in your place.
Contributing Writer
Texas Tech Health Sciences Center
Alexia Jauregui is a third-year medical student at Texas Tech Health Sciences Center in El Paso, Texas class of 2021. In 2016, she graduated from the University of Texas-Rio Grande Valley with a Bachelor of Science in biology. After graduating medical school, Alexia is passionate about ultimately serving a border community as a Med-Peds-trained primary care physician.