by Douglas J. Lanzo
Copyright 2024
First published in Academy of the Heart and Mind (April 4, 2025)
He stood atop a hill
he had been climbing
when he felt chest pain
and panted just to breathe,
staring blankly ahead,
unsure of whether
these were his last moments…
A rabbit hopped closer —
gazing up at his eyes,
as its nose crinkled,
sensing something was wrong.
Time seemed to slow and stretch,
as if he could see
each thought across his mind,
approaching final sleep…
How ludicrous, he thought,
that my eyes lie locked
with one of my yard’s
dumbest woodland creatures.
Just as he was about
to succumb to fate,
a wasp alighted
on his arm, and stung him.
Suddenly awakened,
realizing he still
remained alive, with pain
pulsing through his body,
he stumbled to his steps,
and made the wisest call.
ER doctors told him
several hours later
that an embolism
had traveled near his heart —
one bubble burst away
from claiming his life,
and likely would have,
had he gone untreated,
standing in a trance —
staring at a hare —
until one wasp,
by happenstance, providence or fate…
did fly his way.