The Way
The dog with cancer lies on the couch as the family
has dinner. The girls can’t stop talking about
their plans for the weekend—parties, a concert with
The Lovemakers—the kids they like and dislike.
Father insists they say something positive
about the kids they don’t like, how the traits
we don’t care for in others reflect back
on ourselves. Someone knocks on the door
but the dog does not bark.
***
A woman boards MUNI and yells at the driver
when he asks for proof of her handicap.
I don’t need to do shit for you white people anymore.
Have one son and he’s serving your fucking Navy
in Iraq. Fucking shit. You think you rule the world.
Can’t you see I’m limping. Hit by a car when I cross
Everyone on the bus is quiet. A man flips
the page of his Chronicle and everyone turns.
***
In the Temple of the Eight Immortals a man
walks through halls filled with patchouli incense,
stops in front of a bronze Buddha-like god,
red lips a reluctant smile. Nearby a priest chants
from the Tao Te Ching, each breath a string
of musical notes. The man leaves and comes back
with a strip of paper: Chinese characters that resemble
a couple embracing, two people walking, a dancer.
The man hands the strip to the priest and begins to weep.