'How Very Like a Red, Red Rose'

The stuff starts as white powder at the bottom of a one-gallon plastic jug. Add lukewarm water to the line, shake vigorously. Add a thoughtfully included “flavor packet” – lemon-lime, my favorite – to make it “palatable.” Chill. Drink eight ounces every fifteen minutes until the jug is empty. The label calls it “Gavilyte-G Solution 4000ML.” Catchy. Included on the list of possible side effects: “Very bad headache. Throwing up blood or throw up that looks like coffee grounds. Black, tarry [!], or bloody stools. Bleeding from rectum or rectal pain. This drug may cause you to be dehydrated or have electrolyte problems. Rarely, this may be severe or deadly.” And I volunteered for this. The label says, “No REFILLS.” Barbara Loots in “Colonoscopy: A Love Poem” (Windshift, Kelsay Books, 2018) finds something to celebrate in this most humbling of medical procedures. With apologies to Robert Burns: “My love is like a red, red rose. I know because I’ve seen the photographs inside of him…