Respiratory Monitor
They have softened the room’s light
to near dusk, matching the mood—
and the machines speak their lines
in a concert of soft pulses, while
the monitor tracks the vitals
across its impassive face.
Breath, that can barely be heard
by the tired natural ear
of the drowsing, aged spouse
who sits in the bedside chair,
is loud enough for hidden sensors
in the omniscient machine.
Look, the line traces hills
and valleys as a soul continues
its last steps, its arduous course.
The lighted spot ascends and drops
methodically, like an ancient monk
in a far kingdom, journeying
up and down steep mountains,
for a wisdom even he, in his
antiquity, has yet to comprehend.
(Originally published in the journal Lifelines, published by the Geisel School of Medicine at Dartmouth College)
This poem is from the Vital Signs by Vincent Casaregola (Finishing Line Press), and can be found at https://www.finishinglinepress.com/product/vital-signs-by-vincent-casaregola/
Vincent Casaregola teaches American literature and film, creative writing, and rhetorical studies at Saint Louis University. He has published poetry in a number of journals, including 2River, The Bellevue Literary Review, Blood and Thunder, The Closed Eye Open, Dappled Things, The Examined Life, The Healing Muse, Lifelines, Natural Bridge, Please See Me, WLA, Work, and The Write Launch. He has also published creative nonfiction in New Letters and The North American Review.
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