Community Health Worker Training

A simple thing.
Swollen glands,
In neck and under the jawbone.

Could be a sign of TB.
Could be a sign of upper respiratory infection,
Your best chance at detection,
To heal a brother, a mother, or a child.
Not a simple thing.

Lub-dub Lub-dub Lub-dub
Hands on the stethoscope,
Learning to listen for the sounds of disease
Listen to the heart…
Murmurs and faces focused,
Learning to listen,
For the echoes of imperialism.

Diagnosis is 80% history.
Spanish plunderers on the shores;
American soldiers with false aid
And a lecherous gaze;
Philex, Canadian mining giant
Developing nothing but their own profit.

Healing hands, working hands, fighting hands.
Palpitating,
Eyes open and assessing,
Trying to heal the body,
To mend the lives,
To strengthen the community,
To free the nation,
And change the world.

~ Aiyanas Ormond

Is Capitalism a Disease?

Communities sick from hunger,
Sick from pollution,
Sick from dirty water,
Sick from overwork and stress,
Sick from junk food in shiny plastic packages.
And there are bill board advertisements,
And there are 25 choices of toothpaste,
And there are police to protect private property,
But no food, no doctor, no medicine.
Is capitalism a disease?

~ Aiyanas Ormond