The Purple Patch - Missouri Valley College

that I don’t have to think about it. I take a deep breath to
calm my jittery nerves and fill my lungs with the crisp air
before I enter. As soon as I open the door, I am hit with the
smell of bleach and cleaning chemicals. The scent burns
my nostrils and I blink hard to keep my eyes from watering.
I know if I inhale deeply I am sure to choke.
I notice the place is designed as a star. The nurses’
station is the center and each leg leads to a hall of discarded
people. All eyes are glaring at me and not one nurse
cracks a smile. My heart races and my palms are full of
sweat as I ask the bulky, red-haired nurse where the patient
resides. Her subordinates stop working to listen in.
With one snarl and a wave of her hand, they disperse.
She locks her dark brown eyes into mine, sending
chills through my body. She looms over me as she forces a
map into my hand and shoves me in the right direction. I
feel her eyes burning into my back.
I am a frightened tiny mouse trapped in a corner
by the ferocious saber-toothed cat. I gaze down the long
hallway to flee. The fluorescent lights that hang above me
are so bright I have to squint. A cold breeze wraps itself
around me and I take the first step down the hall. Timidly,
I crane my neck and peer into rooms. The shades are
drawn and darkness has taken over, the sound of artificial
breathing spreads throughout the hall, and then I see the
silver number 103. My imagination is reeling with all that
will befall me once I enter. My heart pounds so hard I
think it may explode. I step in.
This cell belongs to an eighty-year-old woman, who
is no longer a human but a shell. Her arthritic body is
twisted. Her glassy gray eyes look straight through me. She
eats the baby-like food when commanded, drinks when
the straw is forced to her lips, and swallows the pills. This
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