He held the heart in his palm,

Just for a few minutes,

Not enough to register in the minds of the nurses.

He’s done this so many times,

But each time he still silently marvels,

At how an organ of moderate size and weight

Was the key to the whole being.

Sometimes he felt like a plumber

The chambers of the heart like the rooms in a house,

Blood vessels like pipes connecting each room.

One clogged pipe left unattended for too long,

And the whole system could fail.