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Poetry and prose
Poem
Flutterings
Free
  1. Andrew RL Medford
  1. Correspondence to Andrew RL Medford, North Bristol Lung Centre, Level 6 Gate 10, Brunel Building, Southmead Hospital, Westbury-on-Trym, Bristol BS10 5NB, England, UK; Andrew.Medford{at}nbt.nhs.uk

https://doi.org/10.1136/medhum-2017-011220

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    A fullness in the neck,

    a slight fluttering of the heart,

    a warmness of the skin.

    No need for coats or heating.

    And then the crescendo of the flutterings,

    all goes quiet with the feeling of being

    removed and disconnected from the body.

    All energy seeped out now.

    The pill is swallowed and abstinence follows.

    And gradually, the crescendos lessen;

    we are now in the second movement of this concerto,

    diminuendo or andante perhaps?

    Further visits for the jelly but the nemesis remains,

    hidden from the waves. Beware the silence now,

    as the flutterings may return at any time

    with renewed vigour. Be vigilant for vivace

    as andante may not last forever.

    Will this concerto ever end?

    Footnotes

    • Competing interests None declared.

    • Provenance and peer review Not commissioned; internally peer reviewed.