A poem for Audrey

My anatomy class smells like text-book
desperation, and lavender.
The 20-year old in the corner
must believe in oils.
The professor, so far to the front
of the room, asks something
regarding antibodies and
clumping.
Then he is quiet, waiting for response.
Nobody else knows.

I know.
I know the answer.
Why do I have to know?
Oh yeah, I studied.

I hate this part.

Not that I am telling a secret,
it is just the air forgets to resonate
in my voice box.
Maybe it has the memory
of  a fish.
It forgot.

My brain grasps
the answer from the trenches
separating short and long term
memory-and timidly flinging my
right hand into the air
The sign that I know.

Lips part and then,
like a pillow being fluffed.
I whisper
"immunoglobulins."

Going back to college as a non-traditional student, which is just a nice way of saying you are older than everyone else, can be intimidating. Overcoming self-doubts, fears, and all the other things that kept someone from attending college years ago isn't easy.

I am so proud of my sister-in-law. She is pursuing her dream of being a nurse. She has four children, and her husband has the busy work schedule that comes with being a doctor. It would be easy to call it good enough, but instead she is pushing herself to do something hard, challenging, and so personally fulfilling.

One of her adorable quirks is being shy. Being smart and shy is hard. But, it doesn't keep her down. A cool epilogue to this story, is by the end of the semester everyone in her class whispered. Peer pressure is a powerful thing.