Quartet of remembrance
======================

* Ian Scott

> Look at the wrinkling fruit on the counter in the basket.
> 
> I wonder if I should pick it up.
> 
> I think I remember when it looked appetizing.
> 
> Maybe it will get eaten.

> I see you running in the school ground.
> 
> When did you get so tall my love?
> 
> It feels like I have forgotten when you grew.
> 
> I don’t want you to leave.

> Our old apartment seemed so small.
> 
> When did we bring all this into our house?
> 
> I can’t seem to throw these things away.
> 
> Perhaps when we move.

> Look at the peeling paint on the steps.
> 
> I wonder if we should repaint them.
> 
> I think we should choose a different colour.
> 
> Maybe we should do this next year.

![Figure1](http://www.cmaj.ca/https://www.cmaj.ca/content/cmaj/184/1/E97/F1.medium.gif)

[Figure1](http://www.cmaj.ca/content/184/1/E97/F1)

Image courtesy of © 2012 Thinkstock

## Footnotes

*   “Quartet of Remembrance” received an honourable mention in the 2011 *ARS Medica* and *CMAJ* Humanities Poetry and Prose contest, announced at the 2011 Canadian Conference on Medical Education.