First Thing in the Morning

I take seriously Christ's injunction:
Physician, Heal Thyself!

I lance my own boils
Scrape away warts to the bone
Slice and purify puss blisters
Treat my own fevers
Sew up my own cuts
Remove my own fish hooks.

If I can do it without passing out
I'll do it myself.
Over the years I've taken responsibility
For my injuries and wounds.
Twice I've awoken to the bright lights
Of hospitals.
Had I known I'd been in the box
Of a Fire Department Bone Bucket
I'd have jumped at the next light
And healed myself.
I've dressed and walked out
Of hospital rooms
Wanting to go home to die.

If you know me
You know I'm speaking truth.

There are some deep wounds
I've never successfully treated.
God knows I saturated them with
Alcohol
And I've medicated them to oblivion.
But the next day
Those very wounds were the first
To greet me at daybreak.
Nothing tastes worse than
Coffee dregs
Stirred with bitter memories
First thing in the morning.

Can't nobody heal that.