The End Of Robert

The doctor said 'now listen Bob, your illness is the serious kind, and when I turn this silver knob on your machine you soon will find that all your pains will fade away and energy to eat returns. I'm sorry that I cannot stay to help you with your deep concerns.' He left and two male nurses entered to prop him up and change his sheet while one of them had Robert centred the other pulled from wet-soaked seat the bedding out and while they worked they teased and taunted their old charge but soon they tugged and pushed and jerked for other patients were at large, and had to be retrieved and fed and medicated to the hilt and settled back into their bed where they would hope not to be killed. Yes, my dear friends, the time has come where care has given way to greed I know this will be news to some and shock you, since you have indeed been fed a lot of useless hype and have been told that doctors care but let me say that this rare type of 'carer' (yes, I'm being fair) , no one has seen him for some time he went extinct in 1950, the new ones live a life of crime you tell it by their eyes, the shifty and smiling twinkles to confuse the suffering sod and next of kin and if you dare and plain refuse to take indifference on your chin they do have special ways to smash objections into smithereens before you know you'll be just ash they have the know-how and the means. The specialist is coming now, that's why the bedding was renewed he will explain the when and how to Robert, who is quite subdued. Fresh talcum powder has descended on linen of the starchy kind so that no nostrils are offended and he can speak his learned mind. 'Well, Robert, this is what we figure your chances are as you can see that of a lonesome jungle digger who's lost his comrades, wants to flee but is surrounded by the Cong and only has his bible left from which he now retrieves the song although of hope he is bereft I told you only gold could be the agent that would bribe your foes the same is true if you ask me you can't expect to have these blows that have been handed you by God be wiped away by pocket money no, what you need for that old bod is not some magic Easter Bunny or Santa with his bag of tricks or a magician from Down Under what you must have is one last fix that will restore you from asunder to what you once were in your Pub a man of stoutness and of presence oops, let me help you with that cup. I am so glad you grasp the essence of what I need to tell you here. It is, I'm happy to report, a matter of a lot of dough a hospital is no resort and we can't give a gratis show your spouse was kind enough to sign the special paper listing assets don't worry all this is benign unlike your system and its facets we've taken 80 big ones gladly and will require much more soon your illness does progress quite badly yes, let me help you with that spoon, the chemo has been shipped tonight tomorrow morn we'll hit you hard and if it works, which well it might it's up to God now, keep your guard right up you must be optimistic I told you that you had twelve weeks with not a chance when they were gone I'm proud of you, it's he who seeks will turn the life extension on.' The doctor went into the 'teria where two more colleagues were relaxing one said 'you got it, I do hear ya, it's always good this special waxing that's part of Medicine today we're clerics who wax lyrical and help to transfer lots of wealth by quoting some empirical new cure for them to gain new health so what will be his new prognosis if you don't mind, some fifty days? ' 'It's more like seven but the blame will rest with God and not with us, I figure that it is a shame that not too many have this plus of being rich like this old clown our world would be a better place if we could put these people down like they just did in Terri's case.' Then they went out to Chez D'Argent a restaurant for special palates and ate the best that a Gourmand can serve, right with the fancy salads from Southern Greece, flown in by plane the evening was a plush affair they talked about how many sane and clever people could not care how much it cost to save their lives and if it took a special pill or fancy instruments and knives it was a matter of goodwill and trusting your physicians, yes well, they arranged to meet again next Saturday, with formal dress it was a dinner just for men. Meanwhile the week went by in haste the chemo ruined his joy of life his hair fell out, he lost his taste and when she came, his lovely wife he did not know who held his hand although her voice did ring a bell the nurses knew it was the end one said that she could always tell when in the corridor the Reaper was traipsing in, with his own shuffle he was relieving Robert's keeper approached the bed with his kerfuffle. It was the day of that big dinner, the dress-up kind of all the quacks and no one thought of one poor sinner whom they had squeezed up to the max. He'd paid his dues and extra fines had been deceived it was routine they served Gourmet Food to those swines and Robert H. had left the scene.