elegy for home 

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the houses on this street have teeth / they have skin & they are always writing / the same poem / the same long wet poem / the same slap back drip / the same tough money / the houses on this street / wail when the sirens come they weep / when the men come stumbling / & the dog dies / & the nurse next door / refuses chemo / the houses on this street have ghosts / they know who set the fire / they know who ripped the panties / & who lost the keys / the houses on this street remember / the girl who ran away / the crushed blue jay / the rabbit who pushed out her stomach / instead of her young / the houses on this street remember / the old man / his trench coat / his neck breaking / where he fell / what his wife said when she saw him standing / in the hallway days after / the houses on this street know the ‘nam vet who piled / hay behind the shed / they remember when he couldn’t / sleep / when he didn’t / take the meds / his red eyes / the pacing & the screaming that echoed / the houses on this street are tired / they have stood a long time / they are heavy / with gravestones / yes the houses on this street are thick-knuckled / they pluck the hydrangeas / they are held up by bricks & old stairs / they hold it all tight / in locked boxes / they fear / we will forget / they kept us living / long enough to remember