Explain the usage of "of us all" in the poem "To the doctor who treated the raped baby and felt such despair."

In the poem, the phrase in question, 'of us all,' can be found in the first line. It refers to those who are interested in the baby's fate and those who are thankful that there is a doctor in their midst who will tend to the brutalized infant.

Through the use of enjambment, the poet cleverly paints an accurate portrait of the dichotomies of life. While the process of living continues normally for most people, the existence of horrific aberrations in the fabric of life cannot be ignored. Enjambment is a poetic device that is used to highlight a sense of continuity in a poem; non-existent pauses at the end of each line lend an immediacy and urgency to the poem. As we read, each line melds into the next in a rhythmic symphony, reinforcing the notion that the aberrations of life will always co-exist with the mundane.

While the doctor works furiously to save the life of the baby, life must continue normally for other children. The phrase 'of us all' also suggests a sense of collaboration: concerned citizens must rely on the doctor to restore a measure of normalcy to the life of a brutalized infant while they strive to preserve security in the lives of other innocents. So, in a sense, all concerned parties must labor for the security of all.

And for the rest of us, we all slept in trust
that you would do what you did,
that you could do what you did.
We slept in trust that you lived.