a rooftop pint makes everything bearable
Today at work, my infant patient died.
I spent hours with the family trying to help them come to a place of peace. I disconnected the ventilator and IVs myself. I watched grandparents grieving for not just their grandchildren, but their children – empty-handed parents – as well. I followed the child to the morgue and put her on the cold metal table and covered her with a handmade fleece blanket in a palpable juxtaposition.
Then my life went on, something for which I was both grateful and resentful.
I met a friend for a beer on the rooftop patio at the Cafeteria in Uptown. The sun was setting slowly and beautifully, brightening up our beer glasses and casting different shades of amber.
And suddenly I could breathe again.