The Stairway
Climbing the steps one foot at a time \ He fell short of just one. \ But it is a part of the paradigm \ So I convince him that his journey is far from done.
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
UC Riverside School of Medicine
Lisa is a fourth year medical student at UC Riverside. She completed her bachelor's degree at UC Santa Barbara in biopsychology with a minor in English. She enjoys hiking, backcountry camping, and cooking plant-based meals.
Expecting
She said, / “Doctor: / I know you’ll think I’m crazy, but / I really want to get pregnant.”
Basil
It was pink / like the flowers he buys his wife. / It was not uniform.
Tongue Tied
The motor commands that choreograph speech are a privilege to possess, though I frequently find myself thinking / about silence, / and the reasons for which I may choose to leave it unbroken.
Deliverance
Jagged shards of lightning playfully dance across the horizon, / their shrieks of war struggling to keep up … / I hesitantly about-face and land my gaze upon his ethereal face.
Impunity from Lack of Immunity
On the first day of lecture, my dear, sweet professor / Had fallen ill with a case of the flu.
Name Tag
There is pain on her face. / I’m walking on the busy sidewalk, / I don’t know her.
Superficial Separations Meet Surgical Reflections
Open. / Open abdomens. / Idealized organs from Netter’s in the flesh.
Elysium and Hades from My Backyard
Soon, / There / Will be / A true cure.
The Line
I have stood on both sides of the line– / The line between mother and medic; / The line between parent and practitioner.
your heart has four chambers, is there room for me?
time, / its lifespan ceases to exist / as the gold warmth of your hazel eyes surround me
Last and First Days
Was it a fall? Did I miss the last step? These things I cannot recall / Hidden from sight, the blood crept from one lone vessel and began to compress / Nice to meet you, one medical student said, as he unzipped my sheath
Contributing Writer
Chicago Medical School at Rosalind Franklin University of Medicine and Science
Sal is an M1 at Chicago Medical School where he also serves as the Benevolent Overload of The Medical Humanities Club. In his spare time he works in the Resuscitation Institute at the University.
A soccer coach once told Sal, "you are pretty agile for your body type." The description was overwhelmingly accurate.
