Kristina Ibitayo, MSN, RN, is a poet, a nurse, a PhD nursing student, and an editorial assistant for the Journal of Child and Adolescent Psychiatric Nursing. On the subject of her poetry, she says, “Creating poems delights me, as the mysteries and intricacies of life gradually reveal themselves as mosaics of promise.” Ms. Ibitayo made her American Nurse Today debut with two poems in the June 2007 issue.

Tomorrow

Looking at today
I see tomorrow,
Countless morrows
With intertwined sorrows.

Glancing ahead,
I remain far behind,
For my tomorrow
Is not yet written,
Except in the book
Of ageless wonder.

It is only
In the determination
Of retaining hope
That joy is found
In the trials of today,
And tomorrow becomes
Its true treasure,
A new beginning.

Today’s Leader

To lead
In today’s world
Is to inspire
And invigorate
Those that follow,
Refreshing others
In spite of chaos,
Rearranging order
In the midst
Of impasse.

To be a leader
Is to take
A road forsaken
By many
Because of personal cost,
The price of
Servanthood.

In leading,
One follows
First the path
Of a learner,
Tuning in to
The heartbeat
Of staff varied,
With their myriad
Emotional hues.

Thus the challenge
Of conversion arises,
To synthesize
Attained knowledge
Into a visible presence
That motivates
And moves staff
From the plateau
Of ordinary tasking
To the peak
Of extraordinary performance.

The mark
Of a true leader
Is the ability
To guide with wisdom
And insight,
While daring
To be visionary
In breadth and scope.

My Brain and I

After an interminable slumber
My brain woke up.
It walked away,
Turned around,
Stared me down,
And said quite clearly,
Come on, let’s go.

Time’s wasting,
People dying,
You’ve a purpose,
Let’s go.
Let’s go,
Down days,
Good days,
Let’s go,
It’ll work out.

So, in one accord
We left,
My brain and I,
For a destiny
Still unfolding.