My first P.M. (Autopsy)

narrative verse

 

 

 

My First P.M.

 

I felt no apprehension

I was quite frankly curious

prepared to pay attention.

Which made my colleague furious.

 

Because he had expected me

 to turn pale green, perhaps pass out.

Instead of which I strained to see.

Surprising him I have no doubt.

 

To ascertain the cause of death,

 we had to solve that mystery.

I didn’t even hold my breath,

the process interested me.

 

I watched spell bound as in a trance

the work of the pathologist

. A man who left nothing to chance

 as he worked through his own check list

 

Each organ was removed and weighed

 examined carefully to see

what changes disease may have made.

His findings noted carefully.

 

In speech upon a Dictaphone,

 speaking conversationally

I was surprised how time had flown

as I watched fascinatedly.

 

I asked him what the verdict was

and how the man had come to die.

He said that he could find no cause

that he could clearly identify

 

A heart attack I’ll certify

 to satisfy officialdom.

It is the truth most probably.

He went because his time had come.

 

I can remember vividly

I was surprised by what he said.

He spoke with great authority.

We can be certain he is dead.

 

I can find nothing untoward

which might suggest some sort of crime.

The man has gone to his reward.

He simply had run out of time.

 

18-Jun-08

 

Http:// blog.myspace.com.poeticpiers

Reviews

[Lena M. P.]

Having assisted with autopsies my hat is off to you, if you handled one this well. Bravo! It takes a different mind set to appreciate it like a puzzle and realize that the soul has gone on to another plane and it is just the vessel that we are diagnosing. Good write.

[Sharon Miller Bolander]

I would call that a good death. We are all in the process of dying from the day we are born. Some of us stick around long enough to die just because our parts wear out. I really did like this poem and was curious about the outcome from the first lines. In other words, you definitely held my interest! Sharon

[Ray Hamilton]

We are all on borrowed time
Because of all the accidents in my life my late father once told me
I was already dead I just didn't know enough to lie down LOL
I enjoyed this write as always
Thanks Ray { Not a Poet }

[Cliff Rhodes]

I find this very satisfying to read in that you took great care to look for and find the words that ryhme alternately with each line. I like to do that because it is just amazing to me that there are so many choices of words to pick from once a writer starts looking and then his choices get larger and larger the more it is practiced. This is a really nice read. Thanks for sharing your thoughts too. Time, it is a-coming for us all.
Have fun......too.