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all the people passing
through towns
pissing in hotel sinks
watching the cars
go by from their window
dreaming on their backs
in a pool next to some
family and their kids

well what else is there

I invite a friend over
in the afternoon
and we watch a cardinal
fly about the porch
landing on chairs
and jolting when it hears
us exhale

well what else is there

I’m putting up a fence
around my hands
and becoming an activist
that stands out in the rain
and pickets things the news
tells me are dangerous

well what is there

on a daily basis
we lose our teeth
and our brothers find hope
that asks to be wed

well what else is there

you get lightheaded
because you don’t smoke
and you miss old lovers
but you don’t do a thing

well what else is there

I get food stuck in my teeth
and pick it out
with my grandfather’s knife