Your swollen thighs
sprinkled with blood
like dandelions strewn
across the front lawn

an I.V. tube is in your left arm
delivering antibiotics
for your unexpected fever

another I.V. tube is in your right forearm
full of pertocin
to induce labor
and nudge it a little faster

two probes inside
your uterus
one listens
to the baby’s heartbeat
and the other
either measures your contractions
or I wasn’t listening again…

doctor prescribed tubes
race across your belly
a highway interchange
of health care

contractions
nature‘s own shock therapy
rips through your body like
lightning bolts

cold metal bed pans slipped
underneath your tired body
like a letter
shoved underneath a closed door

you were so exhausted
that you didn’t even see
that one tear
leave my eye