You are dust swimming
through sunbeams in the morning,
sunbeams that pass the slit of my bedroom curtain
like spotlight. You are the main act.

I wait for you to settle on the floor
and ******* away.
You ******* away
and I breathe you in.
I breathe you in despite

the irritating possibilities.
Despite you,
you, making me heady
you, making my eyes watery, red
you, making my nose drip, my heart bleed.
I breathe you in, still.

You are a moment,
the longest suspension of time
before a long awaited sneeze.

You are dust, love,
sometimes we all are.
You are that.
And antihistamine.
And much more,
so much more.

I thought love was when you made me hot tea in the morning because I was sick

I thought love was how you stocked up on tissues because you found out I had allergic rhinitis

I thought love was when you hugged me in your sleep, without knowing that I was awake and silently crying

I thought love was your commitment to waiting for me, being patient with me knowing that I was not in an easy state

I thought love was the way you dealt with my intoxicated breakdowns

Man, the list could go on because I honestly thought maybe love was all the things you did that I wasn't used to because you made me feel that for once, the stars finally aligned in my favor

but you were just in a phase of infatuation while I was in a phase of breaking down walls, learning to accept the "love" I was never used to.

Real love, my dear is how I am hurting;
is knowing I deserve better
but still wishing you were the better that I deserved.

I miss you
I should stop
but real love doesn't just go away so quickly
which is why I'm left to wonder
why you're so okay with losing me

I guess that just means you never loved me.

It started with a scratchy throat,
then zapped my nose and eyes;
coughing, sneezing, wheezing,
and my mournful little cries.

Invaded by an unknown foe,
that gave me chills and shakes;
Yes, I tried the chicken soup,
and whatever else it takes.

Can't do things when you're sick,
my organs aren't bionic,
I sit stiffly in my chair,
very rigid;  catatonic.

My rhinitis is pathetic,
a sieve I cannot quell;
my eyes leak liquids too,
it's the truth -I feel like hell.

It could be due to weather;
perhaps some allergies;
but I am on the mending road,
whops-excuse me while I sneeze!

Hope was delivered quickly, mercifully,
as the aseptic needle silently, expertly
pierced the anxious skin of my upper arm
bared to its untattooed, obese reality
and scarred deeply with forgotten badges
from islands and mountains and forests
and caves, with souvenirs and tokens
from clingy rattans, unforgiving wasps,
solicitous leeches, and hyperactive biting midges.

Pushed by magmatic desperation, something
imposed by elected incompetence, fudged
as a destiny of an unfortunate nation,
I toed the line of the long queue, hiding
my rhinitis-ruled nostrils and mustached
mouth from the many dreaded arms
of SARS-CoV-2, uneasily shielding
my embarrassed face from sneezed aerosols.

Aging paranoias of undignifiedly drowning
in one’s own phlegm unconsciously fuel
the tired and greying servant. Respite is not
as appeals for help to ease the burdens
of mountains of debt, and so sadly, yet
the beloved, alone, succumbs to death.

We’re all hostages - and the ransoms demanded
by this protein-coated tyrant are costly,
unjustly. Incarcerated by our fears of being
caught within the nets of this pirate at the sea
of our existence, we are, I am, grasping at all
but the last strands of a rotting rope – hope,
diminishing, flickering hope of salvation
from pathogenic damnation. Come messiah!

Likened to Christmas Stars shining bright,
the sages of Science illuminated our dark night
And through the ***** of a hypodermic needle,
Hope was delivered quickly,
mercifully,
compassionately . . .

Pentacel is a vaccine indicated for active immunization against
diphtheria, tetanus, pertussis, 𝗽𝗼𝗹𝗶𝗼𝗺𝘆𝗲𝗹𝗶𝘁𝗶𝘀 and invasive disease due
to Haemophilus influenzae type b. Pentacel is approved for use as
a four dose series in children 6 weeks through 4 years of age (prior
to 5th birthday).

The following adverse events were included based on one or more of the following
factors: severity, frequency of reporting, or strength of evidence for a causal relationship
to Pentacel.
• Cardiac disorders
Cyanosis
• Gastrointestinal disorders
Vomiting, diarrhea
• General disorders and administration site conditions
Injection site reactions (including inflammation, mass, abscess and sterile
abscess), extensive swelling of the injected limb (including swelling that involved
adjacent joints), vaccination failure/therapeutic response decreased (invasive
H. influenzae type b disease)
• Immune system disorders
Anaphylaxis/anaphylactic reaction, hypersensitivity (such as rash and urticaria)
• Infections and infestations
Meningitis, rhinitis, viral infection
• Metabolism and nutrition disorder

• If Guillain-Barré syndrome occurred within 6 weeks of receipt of a
prior vaccine containing tetanus toxoid, the risk for Guillain-Barré
syndrome may be increased following Pentacel.

is a vaccine indicated for active immunization against diphtheria, tetanus, pertussis, 𝗽𝗼𝗹𝗶𝗼𝗺𝘆𝗲𝗹𝗶𝘁𝗶𝘀 and invasive disease due to Haemophilus influenzae type b. Pentacel is approved for use as a four dose series in children 6 weeks through 4 years of age (prior to 5th birthday).

The following adverse events were included based on one or more of the following factors: severity, frequency of reporting, or strength of evidence for a causal relationship to Pentacel.
• Cardiac disorders
• Cyanosis
• Gastrointestinal disorders
• Vomiting, diarrhea
• General disorders and administration site conditions
• Injection site reactions (including inflammation, mass, abscess and sterile abscess), extensive swelling of the injected limb (including swelling that involved adjacent joints), vaccination failure/therapeutic response decreased (invasive H. influenzae type b disease)
• Immune system disorders
•Anaphylaxis/anaphylactic reaction, hypersensitivity (such as rash and urticaria)
• Infections and infestations
• Meningitis, rhinitis, viral infection
• Metabolism and nutrition disorder
• If Guillain-Barré syndrome occurred within 6 weeks of receipt of a prior vaccine containing tetanus toxoid, the risk for Guillain-Barré
syndrome may be increased following Pentacel.

HIGHLIGHTS OF PRESCRIBING INFORMATION
These highlights do not include all the information needed to use
M-M-R II safely and effectively. See full prescribing information for
M-M-R II.
M-M-R® II (Measles, Mumps, and Rubella Virus Vaccine Live)
Suspension for intramuscular or subcutaneous injection  
Initial U.S. Approval: 1978
6
ADVERSE REACTIONS
The following adverse reactions include those identified during clinical trials or reported during post
approval use of M-M-R II vaccine or its individual components.  
Body as a Whole
Panniculitis; atypical measles; fever; headache; dizziness; malaise; irritability.
Cardiovascular System
Vasculitis.
Digestive System
Pancreatitis; diarrhea; vomiting; parotitis; nausea.
Hematologic and Lymphatic Systems
Thrombocytopenia; purpura; regional lymphadenopathy; leukocytosis.
Immune System
Anaphylaxis, anaphylactoid reactions, angioedema (including peripheral or ****** edema) and bronchial
spasm.  
Musculoskeletal System
Arthritis; arthralgia; myalgia.
Nervous System
Encephalitis; encephalopathy; measles inclusion body encephalitis (MIBE) subacute sclerosing
panencephalitis (SSPE); Guillain-Barré Syndrome (GBS); acute disseminated encephalomyelitis (ADEM);
transverse myelitis; febrile convulsions; afebrile convulsions or seizures; ataxia; polyneuritis;
polyneuropathy; ocular palsies; paresthesia; syncope.
Respiratory System
Pneumonia; pneumonitis; sore throat; cough; rhinitis.
Skin
Stevens-Johnson syndrome; acute hemorrhagic edema of infancy; Henoch-Schönlein purpura;
erythema multiforme; urticaria; rash; measles-like rash; pruritus; injection site reactions (pain, erythema,
swelling and vesiculation).
Special Senses — Ear
Nerve deafness; otitis media.
Special Senses — Eye
Retinitis; optic neuritis; papillitis; conjunctivitis.
Urogenital System
Epididymitis; orchitis.