Chemotherapy is like killing the last predator
in a bird sanctuary on a small island

With determination and focus it works until
the next stoat arrives hidden in a tourist’s bra

Nobody knows their Use-by date except
condemned criminals in backward lands

A few wrong guesses and you feel immortal
which is a pity because mortality is sweet

tangible and succulent – once you have
learnt how to savour sadness

Karen Peterson Butterworth