Radium Girl by Dorian Brooks

Katherine Schaub was one of hundreds of  young women who worked at the US Radium Corporation in Orange, New Jersey, in the early 20th century, painting numerals on wristwatch and instrument dials with luminous paint.  Many of the women became ill, some fatally.  Schaub died in 1933 at age 31. 

1. 1917—1921

I was 15 when the company

hired me.  I loved my job!

It was tricky at first,

shaping the tiny numerals

just right; but I soon caught on.

I’d moisten my brush with my lips

to give it a fine point,

as the foreman taught us.

And we had such fun!

When we turned off the lights,

we saw radium glowing

everywhere—on our clothes

and hair and skin.  Some girls

even painted their teeth

to surprise their boyfriends.

Plus—as the company told us—

we were helping the war effort.

I was so proud.

They never told us

what radium does

inside the body,

nor that its half-life

is 1600 years.

2. 1922—1927

A year after I left,

my jaw went bad.

The pain was unbearable.

I had two teeth removed,

but got no relief.

Others too came down

with peculiar symptoms—

like my cousin Irene,

one of the first to die. 

Not for several years

did doctors say it was radium

that made us sick, although

we had our suspicions.

The company said the cause

was our own poor hygiene,

and tried to prevent a lawsuit.

I might have given way

to tears, but I knew

they wouldn’t help.

                                                           

3. 1928

At last, a settlement!

My hip hurt so, I could hardly

climb the stairs to the courtroom,

but they gave five of us

$10,000 each!

Then the doctors gave us

a year to live; so I thought,

okay—for a year I’ll be

Cinderella at the ball.

After I pay my debts,

I’ll buy some pretty clothes,

stay at a country resort

and try horseback riding—

maybe even get a car!

I loved to sit on the porch

and gaze at the hollyhocks.

With lots of fresh air and sunshine,

I began to think—after all,

why shouldn’t I get well?

4. 1929—1930

Relapse.  Months in the hospital.

Anemia.  Radium necrosis. 

Terrible pain in my knee.

A fall; a fracture; an X-ray—

cancer of the bone.

I’m so tired of this experiment.

5. 1931—

I can walk again,

if I use my brace and cane.

It’s really my faith in God

that keeps me going.

I don’t want any more treatment.

What I want most of all

is to write—to help others

by telling my story.

That, to me, is happiness.

If only I live long enough!

But even now, I’m blessed:

I close my eyes and

I see God’s face—

radiant

timeless