Hanging below his nameplate
Is a list of foods
His favorite ones
Demanding kid, that one
Takes a jibe our boring followups
Counts the number of his ITs
Suggests to improve on our memory
Instead of repeating daily
Such gall and spirit
Comparable to none
She begs for respite
Give me a few minutes
and I will be ready
For this damned sedation
I will, I will, just wait a bit
And so passes an hour
But she isn't ready
Breathes hard
Sobs and screams
But she isn't ready yet
We can't give her more time
He reads wimpy kid!
And stays for hours at it
Oh come on kid!
Anything but that?
Can't swallow, can't sleep
But smiles like a good lad
He is a serious one!
Convinces us to vote
And that too for imran khan
Wonder if he considers
Voting, in years to come
Fingers crossed
The way he holds her
All parents love their kids
But the way he holds her.
She likes to be called
By a boyish nickname
Gets delighted by the sound of it
Little girl in pain
But a smile on her face
A father that loves her
To the depth of his bones
I hope to see you again
But not like this
He asked us today
If he'd be able to fast
During the month of Ramadan
He's chemo naive
And cannot anticipate
With a dimple on his left cheek
(Which he claims is actually an insect bite)
And creases at the edges of his eyes
He smiles and tells me
All I do is draw blood out of him!
I need to stop, he tells me
I left her at the PICU
And promised to come back
for her a day later
Saved no bed
And dared not revisit
Days passed
And so did she
As silently
As wind over the sea
He said he will only buy
A one way ticket
Cause he doesn't think
Or wish
To return
From his last travel
The holy pilgrimage
Yet he lies here on this bed
Completely aware
Checking on his morphine
Keeping a watch on time
Says he's tired
But I can see him fighting
She was the only one
That noticed I got a new bag
Winked at me
Whilst I was debating
How soon would PICU team drop by
To see her
Pointed and raised her eyebrows
And I responded with a laugh
That surprised my colleagues
How could I laugh in such a difficult situation
Certainly their spirit of resilience
Is higher than all of ours combined
AREEBA SULTAN, MBBS, is a Resident in Pediatrics & Child health at Aga Khan University Hospital in Karachi, Pakistan.