normal

the call came in as
we were sitting down
to dinner
between sobs
she said I should come now
he's actively dying
she said

my friend of so many years
not yet forty
loves his wife and little girl
and a brand new baby
a boy
the guys down at the warehouse
think the world of him
my friend
who will soon no longer exist

he told me it
feels like an execution
went in for an annual check-up
walked out a condemned man
sentenced to death and
only god knows his crime

the only people I’ve lost
are still alive
but to lose this man
we’re best friends
it goes unsaid
but we love each other
he’s someone I laugh with
cry with
count on
and he can tell me anything
even how much dying scares him

he’s gone by the time I get there
refused entry by some family member
I’ve never met
I sit in my car
in the dark
alone with my disbelief
while those inside
no doubt stumble about
in some horrific grief
that must surely come
in the presence of
one so young and dearly loved
now so newly dead

I look over at the light on the porch
as it shines out on a landscaped yard
a tree lined street
try to make some sense of this
a couple walking their dog
moves past on the sidewalk
from here
it looks just like a
normal house