Limits of Control

By Mark Reels

In the operating room, I have power and control. Nurses respond to my commands efficiently and with deference. My mastery of technique and anatomy ensures that the patient is safe while in my care.

But when the retractors expose the tumor, my power fades. The black mass has invaded the vulnerable pink liver. Knots of veins pulse defiantly on the surface of the growth. Any attempt to remove the malignancy will result in a fatal hemorrhage. Radiation or chemo will be useless.

In the waiting room, the future widow sits. My power expended, I deliver the news and return to surgery.