On Death and Dying

 

The Inopportune Ride

I want two things
Said the old man
To die alone and
To die in pain.
“And why is that?
Do people not
Want the opposite?”
Why yes, indeed, they do.

“But why alone?”
Implored the bystander.
So they remember me alive.
“But certainly not in pain?”
Alas yes, to feel alive.
“I hope for your success”
Good day to you, too.

And so the train emptied,
Filling again; new faces
To pass the time.
And still the old man sat,
Surrounded by strangers
Free of pain, knowing,

Today was not his day.

Obligations

I’m going to beat this
She said again.
And with pursed lips,
Upturned corners,
We obliged her echo.

Though our ears,
Our ears resisted.
For had they not,
For had they heard,
We’d have been obliged.

And we were just not ready
To correct her.

Kelly Ryan Murphy is an MS2 and former Duke undergraduate.