If you know
you’ll die next Tuesday
do you
tell them all,
or none?

do you venture
powder-sniffing
stranger-grappling
darkness,
or sing
lilting echoes
while you sand-dance
by the waves?

Is there rage
that claws you from inside
do you
corner on two wheels,
puddle-jump
a friend’s skidoo
or
Meditate
watch swallows swirl their sky art
find pleasing music
in waterfalls
or rain?

How do you
choose a last meal?

When
do you say goodbyes?

How
do you go to sleep
on Monday night

Dr. Karen Lea Armstrong is a writer and former family physician from Timmins, Ontario, Canada. She has published poetry, short stories and nonfiction in such varied publications as Ars Medica, Capsule Stories, Grain, The Antigonish Review, and Canadian Family Physician. Her first novel, Drownproofing, was published in 2023. Karen lives with her husband Paul and her lovable but untrainable rescue dog, Piper. Find out more at www.karenleaarmstrong.com.