Tag: John Graham-Pole
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Marshmallows
John Graham-PoleClydesdale, Nova Scotia, Canada The writer E.B. White accused our society of being suspicious of anything non-serious. Thank the stars, then, for humour. I had a teenage patient with advanced cancer tell me after I had given him some none too hopeful news: “Lighten up, doc, I don’t need solemn doctors around me.” A…
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Twins
John Graham-Pole Clydesdale, Nova Scotia, Canada Artwork by Susan Napier. Published with permission. Why was she taken? While you remain to question me for your school project? Renee had a project. Her seventh-grade class had been set the task of composing an essay on some aspect of American society. She had settled on tackling…
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Poppy power
John Graham-Pole Gainesville, Florida, United States Dr. Graham-Pole with cancer patient, Bridget. At the time of the photo, Bridget had life-threatening cancer requiring opioids, and is now a successful artist. Author photo. The poppy’s juice . . .brings the sleep to dear Mama — Sara Coleridge, Pretty Lessons in Verse for Good Children In…
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The truth of the imagination
John Graham-Pole Antigonish, Nova Scotia, Canada Scene from “As You Like It” Photography by UMTAD “All the world’s a stage, And all the men and women merely players: They have their exits and their entrances.” Life as Performance Art The bard got it right: we are all actors, whether stars or bit players. Our…
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The company of butchers
John Graham-Pole Antigonish, Canada It’s 5am. I peer through fast-revolving doors and eye the light skim of snowfall. I’m aware of a deep shiver. It’s the breeze flapping my skimpy white coat, right? Don’t kid yourself, rank fear is what this is. This is my first 24-hour stint as a surgical dresser. This allegedly…
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First blood
John Graham-PoleAntigonish, Nova Scotia, Canada Hospital for Sick Children, Great Ormond Street, London, 1970: I’m astounded I’ve landed one of the coveted G.O.S. senior resident jobs. The academic nature of the place immediately daunts me. Everyone bows down to its status as the foremost pediatric research hospital in Europe, perhaps in the world, the faculty…