Beatrice Preti
McMaster University
Class of 2017

Picture of a snowy landscape with trees in the background. StrahilDimitrov/iStock/Thinkstock.

StrahilDimitrov/iStock/Thinkstock.

When she wakes up, I see her eyes
Filled with the hope of a million lies
Fading fast like a twilit sky
When the stars appear, I know I’ll cry
But I stay strong, that’s what I do
And watch as she stays stronger, too
We speak a bit and laugh a lot
About the things that life has brought
She hasn’t much time, her eyes are dim
The sun is dipping below the rim
Night comes early in winter time
And lives blow out before their prime
But she doesn’t know the things that I see
The tests, the numbers, the ECG
And so she smiles, the lights dance in her eyes
She says, “When I go home, I’ll bake you a pie.”
My heart sinks because she isn’t lying
She doesn’t know that she is dying
But I do know, and I will mourn
For her, and all the patients who I’ve lost before
Because it’s only human to feel hurt and pain
When a light blows out you couldn’t save
And though her eyes bear hope and light
I know she won’t live through the night
But she still speaks, her bright eyes blink
Yet my mind is hazy, and I can’t think
Her eyes are blue, just like my heart
The impending night tears us apart
And though I’ll live to see brighter skies
I’ll never forget those winter eyes