One Poem Only is a daily poetry podcast offering a quiet moment with a single poem—read aloud, without analysis or noise.

RashViviana AbnurEverything I know about deathI learned the hard waywhen I saw you go by on the stretcherto intensive therapyI was an atheist like you and I only sawa slight and strange bodypass at the speed of lightis it that perhaps we live confusedor we are just light and nothing elsebecause I suddenly knew in an instantthat you were notin that bodythey took you to the Emergency roomlike a war trophythere was a rush for the doctors to arrivethere was a rush to deathfor fleeing the territoryminutes beforeyou asked for a bookminutes before I hugged you and you told meyou are so goodthen the power outage in the hospitalthe door half openand I was spying on you and could seehow they surrounded you with candlesstill alivelike in a Poe storysomeone hugged me and I criedwe lost said the doctorand I knew deathis in a rush dadand in the rush it's sloppybecause something was taken foreverI knew itbut something notin that defeated bodyyou were not in.

More from Viviana Abnur ↓

• @cruda.luz on Instagram
• Her book, Rash, is available now

Support + Stay Connected to OPO

If you’d like to support the show, Substack and Patreon members receive a copy of my book, For My Daughter, along with episodes from the audiobook.

Poetry sustains. Thank you for supporting the podcast.