survival

when i was twelve
we had seven kids
in three rooms,
four boys, three
girls and a mom
on the couch.
one bathroom. no
ac, a few rattling
fans from the
barracks with a bowl
of melting ice
set in front of
them. and yet we
all had a pet,
a dog or cat,
a gerbil, a rooster
that crowed in
the back yard.
goldfish that lasted
a week and tiny
green turtles
that had even
shorter lives.
on a good day the
church would leave
a basket of
canned goods on
the front porch.
food was scarce,
quiet and peace
even more so.
it was 1968 and
the world was a
black star
collapsing
onto itself. but
somehow we survived
and landed a
million miles
away.