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Poem-a-Day

The only daily poetry series publishing new work by today’s poets.

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Poem-a-day

A Good Doctor

A good doctor  
Makes the recommendation  
To have both 
Breasts removed  
Because of your history and because of World War Three 

If it comes back  
A good doctor holds your hand   
She answers emails  
She says have both breasts removed  
Lifted off and ground up for food 

Food for babies  
Food for mothers 
A good doctor replaces them with bags of birdseed  
You buy her a wedding cake decorated with breasts made of sugar 
Marzipan mother breast and marzipan father breast 

They don’t speak to each other  
They kiss in the dark 
The cancer center has comfortable chairs and a view of the Willamette  
A good doctor pulls you up by the roots of your hair  
Gray jellyfish hair   

Lightning seen out the window of an airplane at night  
You are flying at night  
It’s Mother’s Day  
You have a comfy chair  
A good doctor is flying with you

Copyright © 2025 by Michael Dickma. Originally published in Poem-a-Day on December 19, 2025, by the Academy of American Poets. 

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Michael Dickman

Michael Dickman
Photo credit: Matthew Dickman
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About Poem-a-Day

Poem-a-Day is the original and only daily digital poetry series featuring over 250 new, previously unpublished poems by today’s talented poets each year. Khaled Mattawa is the Guest Editor of December. Read or listen to a Q&A with Mattawa about his curatorial process, and learn more about the 2025 Guest Editors. Support Poem-a-Day.  

If you have any questions about Poem-a-Day, visit our Poem-a-Day FAQ.

Previous Poems

Title Author Date
Tuesday Fady Joudah 01/17/2017
I, Too Langston Hughes 01/16/2017
Songs to Joannes, V Mina Loy 01/15/2017
Heritage Claude McKay 01/13/2017
from “After Dinner Was Over” Katie Peterson 01/13/2017
from “[the old soiled carpet of the wish to be Anaïs]” Wayne Koestenbaum 01/12/2017
Civilian Jared Stanley 01/11/2017
This City Eugenia Leigh 01/10/2017
Foreclosing on That Peril Julie Carr 01/09/2017
Poetry Marianne Moore 01/07/2017

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