Guilt

Talia H Swartz

doi:10.20411/pai.v5i1.395

Abstract

the air is tense and unsafeshimmering veils obscure emotionfears and hopes digitized misunderstoodwarm tears stream for himboth vying for indefinite optionshis lungs are weakershe pleads for himhe cannot pleadhe cannot breathebut not seen through plexiglass wallsand faceshields and masksis guiltguilt that she was on the other sidethat she brought this homethat he is here because of herguilt cannot escape because it is protectedinside the confines of this roomfor no one else to perceiveand in these walls of protectionthat there is nothing to protect herfrom this immutable guilt

Highlights

The air is tense and unsafe shimmering veils obscure emotion fears and hopes digitized misunderstood warm tears stream for him both vying for indefinite options his lungs are weaker she pleads for him he cannot plead he cannot breathe but not seen through plexiglass walls and faceshields and masks is guilt guilt that she was on the other side that she brought this home that he is here because of her guilt cannot escape because it is protected inside the confines of this room for no one else to perceive and in these walls of protection that there is nothing to protect her from this immutable guilt www.PaiJournal.com
MD, PhD is Assistant Professor of Medicine, Infectious Diseases at the Icahn School of Medicine at Mount Sinai. She is a physician scientist who studies inflammation in the context of HIV-1 and more recently SARS-CoV-2 infection. This poem was inspired by her experiences caring for COVID-19 patients on the wards at the peak of the pandemic in April 2020 in New York

Summary

Introduction

The air is tense and unsafe shimmering veils obscure emotion fears and hopes digitized misunderstood warm tears stream for him both vying for indefinite options his lungs are weaker she pleads for him he cannot plead he cannot breathe but not seen through plexiglass walls and faceshields and masks is guilt guilt that she was on the other side that she brought this home that he is here because of her guilt cannot escape because it is protected inside the confines of this room for no one else to perceive and in these walls of protection that there is nothing to protect her from this immutable guilt www.PaiJournal.com

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Conclusion