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This piece was selected as one of the honorable mentions for the AAA’s AnthroDay Student Unessay Competition . This year’s competition was inspired by the Annual Meeting theme, “On the Verge.”

“On the Verge” is a song that dives into the feelings an individual experiences during a time spent in the ICU. The phrase “on the verge” usually has a connotation of time as short as a blink of an eye, but this song describes a prolonged, uncertain situation on the verge of life and death. Drawing on a personal experience of being hospitalized, this song explores the anxiety and hope that arise when time, identity, and autonomy are suspended, and calls for jointly filling the void left by culture and the system.

My time frozen, filled with vacant,

As identity and independence,

from student to patient

completely taken over

But I am sober, I am awake, I am despondent.

Who can answer my questions

What’s the next treatment

Will tomorrow get better

Where’s emotional comfort

When can I end this…