A Tired Nurse Calls You A Lost Cause

and I remind him that your favourite colour has always been blue.
That when your eyes are clear, they are the bluest blue.
That your mother died when we were young. That the only
time you’ve been in a hospital is when you stepped on that nail
when you were seven. That you have lived
on five different continents. That you’re warm when you want to be.
That your laugh shrinks my depression. That you’ve remembered
every single one of my birthdays. That my dog loves you more
than me even though you’re a cat person. That you are my family
by choice and not chance. That what happened to you
might have been tragic, but that you, my brother, are not
a tragedy. I remind the nurse (and you) every day
that you are a goddamn miracle.