the twenty minute visit

it comes down to this.
the group house.
the name tags smoothed
against
the dresser drawers in
the living room.
wide spaces for walkers
and wheel chairs.
something
steaming on the stove,
a vegetable unsalted.
the tv on.
the tv always on.
as if silence would seal
the deal.
be a sign of surrender
to this earth
that calls for you to
quit, to lie down
and exhale what's left.
the tired visitor
on the couch,
saying things that you
say to babies
when they are born.
twenty minutes is
a lifetime.