Dad,
When the talk among friends
turned to blood draws
for their kids.
And I remember...
...a sterile hospital...
me, in tears, afraid;
you, by my side,
consoling, distracting, cheering...
I still remember how you
had me look at you,
Away from the pain,
Away from my fears,
Away from the needle.
...Your love was strong
enough to soothe me then...
And now? Who will
soothe my fears now?
Where do I look now?
This pain is deep;
I feel the ache of it
daily
in hundreds of tiny,
needle-sharp ways.
I bleed,
again and again,
with the loss of you.
Copyright: M. Anna Hanson
7 August 1999