by Deborah Bayer | May 18, 2023 | Chapbook Poems, Poems
Several years ago, I read one of my poems, “I’m Still Your Doctor,” at the World AIDS Day memorial service, I was surprised that my voice broke as I spoke. I felt ambushed by my feelings. But that’s the nature of grief, especially for healthcare workers. We...
by Deborah Bayer | Apr 22, 2023 | A to Z Challenge 2023, Chapbook Poems, Poems
The A to Z Challenge interrupted my series of chapbook poems just before I came to the last poem in my chapbook, the one from which the title is taken. Here is the last of the previously published poems in the collection. The River The clinic door clicks behind...
by Deborah Bayer | Apr 11, 2023 | A to Z Challenge 2023, Poems, Poems (2004 - 2015)
(An excerpt from my memoir-in-progress) The Hospice Medical Director role gave me an excuse to bring poetry into my work as a physician. I selected a poem to begin every weekly meeting, sometimes one of my own. One day I read a poem by Mark Doty, “The Embrace,”...
by Deborah Bayer | Mar 30, 2023 | Chapbook Poems, Poems, Poems (2021 to Present)
Mend My Life In the middle of hours, I walk out, out of the clinic and into the rain. My nurse’s round face behind the front glass door worries as I turn right onto Jimmie Leeds, straight past the Seaview Resort, down to the White Horse Pike, east toward Atlantic...
by Deborah Bayer | Mar 23, 2023 | Chapbook Poems, Poems, Poems (2021 to Present)
Prayer Beads I long to leave the doctor’s life behind, but patients are still pulling at my sleeve. I head for healing of another kind. Four days a week I keep a writer’s mind and pray the words and stanzas flow with ease. I long to leave the doctor’s life...
by Deborah Bayer | Mar 16, 2023 | Chapbook Poems, Poems, Poems (2016-2020)
Identity for Alex Tall enough to get her bag easily from overhead, She’s in business class, one of the first to stand. Her gray jacket and dress make her feel poised. The matching opaque pantyhose are size Q2. The Mary Jane pumps have the tiniest of heels. Chunky jade...
