The Garden of a Just-Recovered Cancer Patient is Not Well-Kept

By G. Zhou

Posted on February 1, 2024

Cover Image Title: You Want Life and Death

Cover Image by: Mattia Magnatta

Classification: Photography

Specifications: Resized from 4032 px X 3024 px

Year: 2023

Location of Creation: Rancho Palos Verdes, California

She stared out the door. The yard was old (new to her) and the fence showed 

Signs of aging — fatigue, for one, she guessed. The fence surrounded

Fragrant-smelling grass, cut fresh, shaved closely

But never as deep or smooth as her own once was. 

Eyes roving, she noticed this tired fence held 

Weeds, too, snaking and spreading from a path in the far right corner, 

Ill with blooms. 

Those red-flowered weeds born in summer dotted the ground 

Like pricks of blood borne from metal. 

Hm, she noted. 

Something to uproot in the future.

Description: 

A young woman returns to her home after being kept in the hospital for cancer treatment. Although she initially sees everything in a different light, in the end, she realizes her newfound freedom and strives to move forward with her life.

[The End]

[Writing Editor: An anonymous contributor]