WE MAKE DO

Like ducks gulp for worms
beaks clapping 
the soupy mud
I’ve got bear claws in 
an oyster shell 
filled with wax  
and brittle gold hair filling up 
a pickle jar
my neighbor gets the mail 
in a mask
looks like Mr. Rogers 
has a car that sounds like a spaceship 
and evil eyes 
hanging from his 
well-pruned tree
I’ve got oil in my nose 
to make a seal 
dear New Jersey Kei 
gave it to me 
to help me balance out 
she’s the kind of friend 
who won’t sign on to 
someone else’s medicine 
but eats gas station egg salad 
with a Coke for lunch 
writes your name in 
loving script 
on her dry erase board
next to the lavender bundle 
in her ambulance van 
from Spokane