In The Hospital

A poem inspired by my 3 stays in the hospital in the past 2 months.

In the hospital,
Strange people sit around me.
They cough, they moan.
They wheeze, they groan.
They find it difficult to pee.

In the hospital,
Everyone has a defect.
Some have bandages, some cannot walk well.
Some are in pain, why I cannot tell.
One way or another, everyone's imperfect.

In the hospital,
It's okay to look terrible.
No one checks their breath or combs their hair.
Every morning, any clothes are okay to wear.
Only the nurses need stay presentable.

In the hospital,
You're allowed to be a brat.
Push a button, summon a nurse.
Smile for Milo, ask for breakfast.
Don't forget soap, hot water and stuff like that.

In the hospital,
Nobody's ever in a hurry.
Days are spent waiting for meals,
Doctors, nurses, thermometers and pills.
Then dinner, and a self-told bedtime story.

In the hospital,
You don't have to smile.
Who cares about being friendly and sociable?
It's fine to remain in your little world.
And embrace your inner emo child.

In the hospital,
There's something new about every morning.
Hope abounds in every corner,
Of going home and getting better.
You look and realise that suffering is fleeting.

In the hospital,
Bad things make everything else good.

Sometimes I wish,
The world could be more like the hospital.