I entered an altered universe. One of machines and pints of strangers' B+ blood. Nurses moving in and out. Taking vitals in masks and paper gowns. A dear family member hooked to tubes that deliver clear bags of chemo. Thrice daily for five days straight. With several cycles still to come. Wrecked. Curled up and fading. Still whispering please and thank you. So I became a self-ordained shaman. I whistled, moved energy with feathers and my hands, tapped, held their toes, and wh
