He sits there thinking....
today's been a good day..
not
too high not too low......
I've done good......
so he goes out with his friends...
and within a
few hours he knows he's in trouble.....
not wanting to be obvious,
he slips away from
them for a few minutes....
just a few greedy minutes to stop the shaking.....
c'mon,
stop......
it doesn't take long and he's flying again...
the sweat slowing down.....
c'mon,
he whispers..
a few more minutes ...
they'll never know ...
c'mon...
he closes his
eyes..
leans his head back and tries to breathe slow...........
Hey man?..
he hears their
call....
are you alright?? ....
oh, yeah, he stammers ..
head was hurting, I had to take a
break...
I'll be right there.......
he dusts himself off...
smooths out his clothes.....
and
slips back into the main stream again........
Later in the night, exhausted,
he comes
home and crashes in the bed.....
still he says, with a weak smile,
I did good
today........
The morning comes like a funeral...
he wakes....
every muscle cramping ..
his
stomach churning....
eyes hurting.....
please just let me sleep, he prays......
after a few
minutes he realizes what's wrong.....
crawls out of bed....
and stumbles to the
kitchen....
slowly he gets the needle ready...
prepares his mixture......
quickly it's over....
he looks down....
happy to see no blood.....
he quickly wipes the spot...
and starts the
long labor of getting dressed...
hoping the stuff starts working
before he gets to
work.............
~To any one who imagined a drug fiend~
just think that there are people
you love,
that do this every day.....
that are ashamed they get weak and sick.....
people
to who a quick fix of doughnut,
or orange juice, is an embarassment....
that if they make
a mistake,
a simple insulin shot is hard to prepare,
but their only way to get themselves
better.....
everyday you meet this 'junkie'
that never had a choice~
Comment: Jay,
I've been enjoying your poetry for some time now, but had never read this one. My wife Clara is diabetic and uses insulin injections, which she sometimes has to take in semi-public places (like a McDonald's parking lot). Fortunately most people are well enough informed, but it still can be awkward. I'm going to share this one with my brother in law also, who has been diabetic since he was a boy some 40 years ago.
John
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Name: ~Jo
Email:
Comment: Have been reading all your work. Hope one day to be half as good as you..Love it all..Joan DeMott
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Name: Yopo
Email:
Comment: This one hit me hard the first time I read it, and it hit me just as hard this time. Thanks for a revealing look behind the scenes, brother! You've put a far-too-common thing into a very human perspective. You also remind us never to take the presence of a valued friend for granted. I don't, and I won't. Blessings, Jay! Ya never fail to tell us the TRUTH, even when it hurts to share it...
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Name: Editor's Note
Email:
Comment: Tried to get Jay to contact the American Diabetes Association in reference
using this poem in their fund raising campaigns, but he said he would just let
us publish it here. It is a poem to make you think seriously about those who
cope with this condition daily. Thank you, Jay.
