Here is the latest installment of Poet’s Corner, presented by the Edmonds Poetry Group.

A.L.S.

Lou Gehrig’s Disease.
Temptation to look away from the future.
The guy in the reclined wheelchair
tubes like octopi forming a halo,
head supported
speaking with his eye movements.

A life sentence.
Hide my hot tears.

Progressive debilitation.
Progressive – gets worse every day
more stripping away of the physical.
No longer
Standing
Walking
Getting.

There’s no cure.
Research funding stripped away
like the nerve cells
used for every voluntary movement
eating
swallowing
coughing
talking.

Atrophy of muscles.
When my mom died, I could hold her up with one arm.
Body like a ragdoll, heart like a lion,
Mind encased like the rose in Beauty and the Beast.

Join the club that no one wants to be in.

Lasts.
At the slot machines in Atlantic City,
Thanksgiving, Christmas, coffee in bed.
Last time leaving the house
sunset on the Atlantic Ocean.

Last breath.

I’m her daughter.
I see her in white starched Nurse’s cap,
perfectly polished shoes.
Slender elixir fingers soothing every patient.

Now she’s one.

Mostly, she lives with ALS
gets her hair done, laughs, buys gifts meant to outlast her,
connects with family, friends, new ALS community on Facebook
thank god for the life raft of the internet if you have ALS.

I become the nurse, no white cap.
Help shower, dress
transfer from chair to bed, never comfortable enough.
Help onto the toilet.
Buzzer buzzes interrupting sleep.
She needs to move. I help her onto her side,
try to go back to sleep on the couch.
A sign on the shelf says, “you’ve got this.”
I repeat the mantra. I don’t believe it.

It’s all so unfair.

Five years later, I scroll through photos.
Club members now dead.
Ileen had tattoos and loved boardwalk pizza.
Meagan was a young mom, traveled to Israel with her family when she found out.
Sal’s wife, hanging on for her daughter’s wedding.
Lana, my mother.
In the photo it’s her and my dad. A handsome couple.
Big smiles, gazing into the camera. She’s in a regular chair.
Neither knows what’s yet to come.
Here, they look casual, healthy, alive, pretty.
Before knowledge.

Learn to say goodbye to the ephemeral
Embrace the eternal, what endures.

What endures?
Love, like ocean waves
perpetually gracing the shore.
Desire to roll up sleeves, do what can be done,
to lessen the burden for others
traveling this tragic path.

Ali teaches English at Meadowdale High School where she works collaboratively with students to publish the school’s art and literary magazine. She is a team captain for the Seattle Walk to Defeat ALS taking place in October. Because May is ALS Awareness Month, she encourages those who can to give to TeamGleason.org or another local ALS organization. Published work: Unmasked Magazine, EPIC Group Writers 2018 Contest winner (second place-poetry); Poet’s Corner

– My Edmonds News