Modern medicine has made great advances
but there are still things that seem
absolutely, positively medieval.
The chairs in the waiting room
border on almost comfortable,
but in the examining room,
since you haven’t yet been invited
up onto the padded table,
the chairs are utilitarian at best.
And then the moment when the doc
asks about your pain level
and you eventually sort out
when he means, and when you pause
he holds up the inane chart
with emoji faces supposed to indicate
the level of pain from 1 to 10.
At that moment you entertain
the passing thought of demonstrating
your pain level on the doctor, a kick
to the knee or elsewhere, a slap, but
you let the thought pass by and say “four.”