From Alma Mater Vol. 2: The Northeast
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*Johns Hopkins University*
It was the night before Christmas,
When a dying Johns Hopkins
Bequeathed the gift of life
To our university and Johns Hopkins Hospital—
So that our residents could return this gift
To patients of America, China, Italy, and Singapore…
Ensuring hundreds of years after Johns’s last breath,
He will live on long after his death.
Who says scientists don’t believe in miracles?
Johns’s philanthropic donation transplanted hospitals
with
the heart of medical care:
The birth of cardiac surgery, the electronic defibrillator, and CPR.
Now today, like Johns, what were thought to be last breaths, have resurrected…
As Blue Jays who rise to challenges not only on the LAX field where we beat defeat
more than any program in Division I Men’s Lacrosse,
but also in medicine:
Discovering restriction enzymes leading to the spawn of genetic engineering.
Striking a bone-marrow treatment for Sickle Cell Anemia using only half-matches.
Matchmakers revamping kidney transplants through plasmapheresis, making A and B compatible.
Developing embryonic stem cells to cultivate the growth of man.
And being the first major medical school to admit—and thus celebrate
The Growth of Woman.
Through the first admission of 1893,
A mother and grandmother can hear the cry of
Their now generation announcing her admission
Into the #1 Medical School in America, with the shared dream of
Her someday working for America’s best hospital.
Where like the residents of Johns Hopkins Hospital,
She can commit to treating Alzheimer’s—
In hopes that her grandmother can remember her graduation.
Looking back at her walking the stage to join men and women who have mastered their respective
majors:
Graduates of the nation’s best nursing program, as well as one of the most esteemed schools of education.
Joining Blue Jays who sang and pranced in dance in the conservatory of the prestigious Peabody Institute,
And other Blue Jays of every color
From every major.
The Blue Jay remembers taking strolls on The Beach with friends outside Eisenhower,
And taking in Charm City’s National Aquarium
to complete the
Inner Harbor experience.
She remembers joining friends in The Nest, to watch the best Lacrosse team in the country…
And she remembers flying out of her mother’s nest,
To aid the next generation of the nation.
On this graduation day, mother and grandmother watch their Blue Jay walk
With school complete,
But she has much more work to do.
She will be a resident at Johns Hopkins Hospital,
Where she will continue to fight for more medical achievements,
Such as the accepted treatment for Alzheimer’s.
It may be too late for her grandmother, and the victims who
Have already fallen behind,
But she can walk forward to ensure
That future generations that meet this disease
Will not succumb to the sad fallen tracks—
By continuing the pattern of Hopkins discoveries
And Progressing to
The Promise of Tomorrow.
Follow ClydeAidoo.com for more poems from the Art of Mind and Alma Mater series shared daily. You can purchase Clyde Aidoo’s latest release, Alma Mater Vol. 3: The West, a poetic celebration of the top universities of the West by clicking the link below.
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