Legacy

Why my back hurts
On a daily basis,
Nothing to do with
Day off stasis,
No; here's a calculation
Regarding what I have lifted,
Mountains crumble
Tectonic plates have shifted,
But daily efforts
In hospital work,
Show a nurses' job
Is more taxing than a clerk.

I calculated
Thirty plus years,
How much weight
Would put you to tears,
On a year, those days
One hundred fifty and all,
Five hundred pounds
Per shift, not small.

And then, that is tallied
An enormous whole lot,
One fifty x thirty
Times five hundred and snot,
To a tune of two million
Two hundred fifty odd pounds,
Wrap your mind around that
And you will say, ZOUNDS!

That is one thousand
One hundred and twenty five tons,
A huge measure of hamburger
Tomatoes and buns,
Hauled from the farm
Way down in Modesto,
But I am not talking
Basil and pesto.

My spine discs are thinner
Scoliosis is worse,
But I am a Nurse
And that is our curse,
I'm not complaining
Just stating a fact,
If this was a stage play
I assure, it's the last act.

Yet, we soldier on
Like other service members,
Standing tall for all of those
Who missed their Septembers
Knowing they would have
Fought on like we do,
When the job is your legacy
Describing me, defining you.