“Damn!” I was driving home from Ottawa University when the car ahead of me fishtailed, then slid off the icy road and disappeared down the shoulder towards the trees. I pulled my foot off the gas, pumped the brakes, and finally came to a stop. Jumping out of the car, I ran back through the driving snow to the skid marks, which were already starting to fill in. I slithered awkwardly down the slope and to the tree where the...

In my experience, most people don't believe in death. Well, they don't believe in it entirely. Some believe that death is a portal to another dimension. A dimension that is dictated by your actions on earth. If a higher being deems you worthy, you are welcomed into a forever paradise. And if that same omniscient being doesn't want you in their realm? You are cast out into a dimension of eternal torture. There are others t...

The short-haired brunette named, Gwen Kaplan seemed a little taller than most girls and a lot prettier. Her eyes were a soft, almost liquid brown, the classic bedroom eyes, and that smile of hers managed to be both innocent and yet, somehow, inviting.  On Monday, June 8, 1970, at 2:30 P.M., New York City time, Gwen Kaplan lost her concentration. While bent over the upturned face of a patient with glaucoma, preparing to pl...

A heart fluttersSit, wait, watch wonderWindow sill a bird muttersEyes please open, seeFingers touch, pulse strongLight return to meHours, days, each passSmells assault from this placeThis surely not the lastBeep, a small changeSounds, a voice says my nameFeet running, feelings rangeRelief, guilt all mixed upBack to me, the bird leavesConfusion, I offer you a cupAssurances given, all is fineA gift, returned to meRelax, eye...

Have you ever seen God?! But I have seen many times!!Now my father is doing absolutely fine but few years ago, that morning around 5.45 AM, I got a phone call from my cousin who said my father is sick. What could happen to a person with whom I talked, in fact, debated on various topics hardly 6 hours ago? He was fine then.Must be "Heart attack" I guessed much before her confirmation. "We are yet to talk to doctors, but we...

In the summer of 1970, an engaged, Jewish, student nurse and a wounded Vietnam vet from the south met in a New York VA hospital. This chapter marks the end of the beginning of their story. Mark Cahill’s body tensed at the familiar, rhythmic click of Gwen Kaplan’s footsteps approached his room. Not for the first time, he flashed back to their fight the day before he left town to spend Christmas with his family. He still co...

Chapter Seventeen - NickI wake up and feel like I’m going to be sick. The room is dark and the only light is from the hallway. I look around and see a shape sitting on the chair with their head on the bed. It takes me a minute to see who it is in the bare light of the room.“Nick,” I say, my voice barely audible and croaky from disuse. I reach out and touch his hair.Nick sits up quickly and looks startled for a minute befo...

Chapter Sixteen - NickI sit in the chair next to Oasis’s bed, I hold her small hand between my hands and rub it trying to warm it up. I can feel tears welling up in my eyes and quickly wipe them away.“Please, Oasis, wake up,” I say to her hoping she can hear me. “The doctor told us that you can hear us and that talking to you should help.”Just then the curtain opens and one of the nurses comes in to check Oasis’s vital si...

Chapter Fifteen - Minerva I run out of the café and race to the truck. I climb in and start crying, horrible, gut-wrenching sobs. I hear the door open and jump before I look over and see that it is Nick. He sits quietly next to me while I sob. “She’s a strong girl,” Nick says when I finally settle down and stop crying. “She’ll make it.” “I know she’s strong but I can’t help worrying.” I tell him looking at him. “I am scar...

Chapter Thirteen - Minerva I sit in the seat waiting for the doctors to come out and give us some news, any news. I sit there hoping and praying that my sister will be okay. I can feel the tears silently falling down my face. It’s been three hours since the nurse told us that they had to operate to remove the bullet and we still haven’t been told what has happened yet. I am looking at the clock on the wall for the thousan...

Chapter Twelve - Nick I find Oasis’ family in the stands and take my seat next to Olivia. She passes me a copy of the program and I see that Oasis is coming up after two other people. “I just seen Oasis and she was a bit nervous,” I say to Olivia politely. “She’ll been fine, Nick. She’s always nervous before she competes but once she gets in the arena is fine,” Olivia tells me with a smile. “She was so happy that you can...

It's hard to explain to the world at large why nursing is so difficult. After all, it's not any one thing that is so hard it can't be done by someone with patience. Empty a urinal, take vital signs, give someone a couple pills, make a bed, write some notes, pass a meal tray, answer the phone, suction a patient, start an IV, answer a call light, insert a Foley, hang an antibiotic: anybody can do these with a little trainin...

Vince remained hospitalized for one month before he was released. The police interviewed him about the attack a week later when the Doctor believed that he was strong enough to answer questions. The detective appeared as concerned as much as his profession allowed "So, were you alone that night?" "Yes." "The emergency center got a call saying a man was being beaten in the cemetery, and the caller sounded female.""Maybe on...

“It's not hard to make decisions when you know what your values are.” Roy Disney Lying in bed, I wait for the doctor to let me go home. An IV is in my arm attached to a bag hanging next to my bed. The slow drip of the liquid seems in time with my beating heart. The room is a light pastel yellow, cheerful but not overstated. A large tree is right outside my window overlooking the beautiful rose garden covering the lawn. La...

Rufus wanted nothing more than to pace the floor, but being bed bound and advised against any strenuous activity, he could do nothing. Instead he just mimicked the movement, which was part of his physiotherapy anyway, and wished he could have a smoke. 'Suppose this could be a good opportunity to give up, though,’ he thought, resigning himself to not smoking, ‘meh, I still wanna smoke. Stressed out here!’“Hey Roof, I’m bac...