Purgatory Here and Now

(Purgatory is the condition or process of purification in which the souls of those who die in a state of grace are made ready for Heaven.)

Two women, out of their minds, sharing a room
One, silent, wrapped head to toe
in the dusty pink institution blanket.
She moves now and then – here a foot,
there an arm – but fully shrouded and silent,
A human form covered in pink. No words. No sounds.

In bed B, a grey-haired woman, lying flat,
staring terrified at the damaged ceiling.
Yelling, yelling full-bore, then muttering,  a questioning cadence with no intelligible question.
Raspy voice. Continuous sounds but no words.
She also covered in dusty pink. But face, chest, arms
are exposed. She yells and clutches sheet and blanket.
Continuous terror shows in her face.

And all the while, the deafening leaf-blower man works
just outside the open window. In the hall people talk loudly,
a dozen TVs compete from a dozen nearby rooms.

Have we evolved at all? Can this be the way to get well?