Anne Enters  a New Phase of her Journey, on the Road to Find Out

Anne Enters  a New Phase of her Journey, on the Road to Find Out

On Wednesday, February 11, Anne was admitted to St, Vincent’s hospice in Ottawa, for 24/7 palliative care

Anne arrives through the sliding glass of the hospice, wind at her back,

arms encircling a blanket – parrot-green, macaw-red –

stitchwork humming with birds from Guatemala,

each feather a song, each wing a memory, stitched tight against the cold.

The corridor smells of cinnamon and antiseptic,

while nurses nod quietly, eyes gentle, hands sure.

She clutches the plaque, a gift from Bulgaria, its edges aglow:

flowers rising, roots swirling into the Kabbalistic tree of life:*

branches searching skyward, roots sinking deep into knowing.

Anne’s blanket drapes her knees, a riot of colour on white sheets.

The plaque pulses softly in her hands, gold and indigo

casting shadows of petals and possibility across the room.

She listens to the hush – birdsong echoing in her chest,

the tree’s silent wisdom rooting her for whatever waits ahead.

Outside, snow begins to fall, each flake a blessing,

each moment lit by the lives she carries along with her.

*The Kabbalistic Tree of Life is a central, sacred diagram in Jewish mysticism representing the structure of the universe, the process of creation, and the soul’s journey.

If you feel like keeping track of Anne’s cancer journey, I’m chronicling it in prose and poetry here:

https://robertmcbrydeauthor.com/news/

Your friend,

Robert

https://robertmcbrydeauthor.com/