For Arthur Dixon Weatherhead 1

You gather us, the wounded ones, 
Into this small room with the closed door. 
One by one we come to you, 
To this quiet, neutral place 
Where we are known, exposed, 
Where you hear our infant cries 
For wounds still fresh-bleeding. 

You who have great insight, 
Turn us about, touch the pain, 
Laugh with us, care for us, 
Attend the flaw kept hidden. 
You are not priest or critic, 
But an impersonal sheltering hand, 
A total yet detached response. 

Interpret us with your acuteness;
Sense that we, instruments of resonance 
Are hollow, to learn, but not empty; 
You are patiently there for us 
And as we leave this small room 
Our silences are filled with remembering 
Music you heard, when you listened. 

January 13, 1971 

Two line illustrations of two black chairs

Illustration: Elvis Swift

Note

  1. Arthur Dixon Weatherhead, MD, was the first chair of the Department of Psychiatry at Cleveland Clinic.