Looking Beyond the Tissue Box, the Art of Letting Go

Excerpt

The line of white coats came filing into the small, beige room and methodically sat at the table across from the family. I immediately recognized the centerpiece, a small tissue box, marking the divide between the health care team and the patient’s loved one. It is a scene I am far too familiar with, and I knew my wounds were still open, my memories still too fresh. I spent the rest of that family meeting staring at the tissue box, listening to the dialog between the palliative care team and the grieving husband, trying my best not to relate. I knew if I looked away from the tissues I would expose myself, and I chose to avoid the inevitable pain eye contact would trigger in my fragile state. …