I think you know
what it means to feel
mortal.

Do anniversaries hurt?

Does time’s passage
diminish the reality
of the pain?—
of the fear?

Scars and asymmetry
validate the physicality
of a past struggle,
but what about
the vulnerability?

Do memories hurt?

Like a phantom limb,
it shouldn’t hurt anymore.
The disease is intangible,
but what about its ghosts?

Maybe once you see mortality,
it can never leave your mind’s eye.
Maybe it will always be a radio
that keeps you awake and aware,
of your fragility.