A new Lazurus Syndrome emerges,
Not of the heart but rather the breath.
Most patients delighted, but
Some did not know how to confront
This subtle reversal of mortality.
Unsure of how to hold new life in their hands,
Frightened at the notion of more years than anticipated.
Proof that time is a gift but living takes strength.
It is no secret that life arrives with caveat.
The bravest thing we do is step outside
Day after day and profess to the world,
“Give me what you’ve got. I’m yours to shape,
Heart beating and lungs open;
I am meant to be kneaded like clay."
Blessed to witness another spring and
Mourn the leaves falling all over again—
Stay for just a little bit longer.
A Trikafta-esque Breakthrough
This poem was inspired by an article in The Atlantic about a breakthrough in the treatment of cystic fibrosis (https://www.theatlantic.com/magazine/archive/2024/04/cystic-fibrosis-trikafta-breakthrough-treatment/677471/). The development of CFTR modulator drugs such as Trikafta significantly extended the life expectancy of people with the disease, but it led to a lot of fear and anxiety in patients that, all of a sudden, were granted longer lives than they had expected. My poem explores this unique confrontation of mortality, and how much courage it takes for all of us to be alive.
Bio: Chloe Zhao is a first-year medical student at the University of Pittsburgh School of Medicine. She is interested in philosophy, memory, and how body stores memory. She has previously been published in VISIONS magazine.