985

green scrubs

in the parking lot of the
hospital my father works at
I saw a doctor pull
a crushed pack of Marlboros
out of his sock

he lit one in the parking lot

I haven’t and hadn’t slept
but for two hours
so I asked him what he did

I think he said
he was a contractor
made the commute
every damn day
from Austin
but look at that car
the one over there
that’s mine
yeah
I know
it makes the commute
a hell of a lot easier

why’d I need to
why’d I need to
why’d I need to

a man on my flight
was loud and cursing
talking on the phone
while the plane took off

everyone around me said
something was wrong with him
that he wasn’t right

I didn’t tell them he needed
help walking or the way
his body shrank in his clothes

I just nodded
and wished I could cry and
they would understand why