She was sure -
She was set -
She was ready.
Every cure,
Any threat,
She was steady.
All the bronchioles accounted for,
Every blood vessel intact,
Ask her any question -
In a beat she’d answer back.
Breathe -
Through the pharynx
The larynx
The bronchi
The blood
Beat -
Through the valve
The ventricle
The vena;

But somewhere up the spinal cord
A bone began to crack
In capacious cranium cavities;
Suddenly, it all went black
The neurons became strangers,
Neurotransmitters confused,
The cornea began to fog
And breaths became subdued