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Letter Unsent

December 6, 2022 14 Comments

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Dear Dr. Desmond,

Three mentors steered me toward this moment: Dr. Okoro, my headmaster in Lagos, who said, “America.” Dr. Chance, my lit professor, who tempered my scientific thinking with humanity. Finally, you, a biochemist and, like me, a woman of color, who suggested medicine.

Today, after a moment to honor our cadavers, I unzipped a bag to begin my first dissection. The head was covered, but I recognized the half-moon scar on your left forearm. Next quarter, when I unwrap your head, I expect to see a smile. I am grateful to be the last student you teach.

Ayodele Ibazebo

By Gary Earl Ross

Reader Interactions

Comments

  1. Kristie says

    December 6, 2022 at 8:54 am

    Wow. You packed a lot into this tight little package that is very moving. Well done!

    Reply
    • Gary Earl Ross says

      December 6, 2022 at 10:18 am

      Thank you! You’ve made my day.

      Reply
  2. Derek says

    December 6, 2022 at 10:32 am

    This is a twist in the tale. Very good.

    Reply
  3. Coco says

    December 6, 2022 at 12:18 pm

    Neat idea of the last student taught.
    Nicely done!

    Reply
  4. Scott Bogart says

    December 6, 2022 at 2:15 pm

    Great story! I read it twice and it was just as good the second time.

    Reply
  5. Valli says

    December 6, 2022 at 5:27 pm

    Great read… kudos …

    Reply
  6. Yogita says

    December 7, 2022 at 2:06 am

    Awesome! Well done

    Reply
  7. Doug Jacquier says

    December 7, 2022 at 7:05 am

    Impressive. Keep going.

    Reply
  8. Patricia Stott-Prince says

    December 7, 2022 at 9:17 am

    well done!!

    Reply
  9. Gary Earl Ross says

    December 7, 2022 at 10:24 am

    Thank you all! After four Nickel City mystery novels, lately I have been writing short stories about some of the characters in the world of private investigator Gideon Rimes. Dr. Ibazebo is an ER doctor who treated Rimes after a shooting and once was a student of Rimes’s professor emeritus godfather Bobby Chance. It’s nice to know these supporting characters can be the center of their own stories.

    Reply
    • Ruth says

      December 8, 2022 at 2:29 pm

      Your talent shines throughout this short story which made me look up your bio on Amazon. Very impressive to say the least. Your Gideon Rimes Books are on my list of what to read next. Buffalo-born, I can say the city is proud to have such a gifted author and playwright in its midst.

      Reply
  10. Chetana Vaishnavi says

    December 7, 2022 at 10:26 am

    When l had dissected a cadaver several decades ago, my batchmates teased, “Be careful, it will wake up”.
    Your story reminded me of that.
    What a beautiful story!

    Reply
  11. Wendy M says

    December 7, 2022 at 3:15 pm

    Very well written, a great story

    Reply
  12. Kelly Louisa Balliu says

    December 8, 2022 at 2:29 am

    The end me shiver a little. Well thought out, well written and poignant too.

    Reply

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