the frowny face. :-(

The frowny face made me smile,

It was a tool for nurses to assess pain.

Frown is pain,

Frown plus tears worse, 

smile means pain free.

Many times I have held the hand

of one in pain.

Cancer, ischemia, infections, system failure.

I learned to recognize pain

in people's eyes,

blind or not,

Look into their eyes,

hold their hand

and feel.

I told Mom, before she died,

that part of her problem was

she wore a smile,

no tears,

and had excruciating pain.

She learned that.

Frowns may not respond to

pain medications,

Smiles may not tell you what is inside,

Tears likewise not reliable,

meaning joy or sorrow in the extreme.

Trust your gut,

Look at him,

hold his hand.

is he in pain?