Polar bears and sharks and dolphins

The nurses loomed like polar bears,
white, fuzzy blurs beside your bed,
and Doctor Walrus hovered there
as well, moustached, bespectacled.

Again you were a child, and in
your small-boy's art, ferocious sharks
lurked everywhere your fancy led.
"I'm a short shark, too," you said.

Now they swam just out of sight,
stirring ripples in your head,
until you closed your eyes, invoking
family and best-loved friends.

Then, as the dizzy turmoil ceased,
three dolphins suddenly appeared,
supporting you on gleaming torsos,
seeking your return to health.

Since that time, the predatory
sharks have vanished with their threat;
emerging from the dark ordeal,
you're flanked by dolphin friends instead.

This was the dream I dreamt you had,
where fears were vanquished, illness fled,
and like Orion, you looked to the shore
as hazards fell behind,
and dolphins bore you joyously
to safe landfall that lay ahead.   
 


for Romany, a wish...