after Cathy Linh Che
My grandfather walked in the snow
With his green jacket
& plastic bag
On the balcony we built
a short snowman
with a cold carrot
My grandfather had a very thick
head of hair
Long eyebrows…bright eyes
He told us stories
He made us toast
He fought in the war
He knew the word “MONSTER”
And also “HELLO, EAT”
What kind of man was he
A short man
With a long walk
Good at walking
He could walk and wait
for a long time
What kind of man was he
He had brown hands
A dark mole
A deaf ear
He fought in the war
He wrote stories
Smoked cigarettes
Played solitaire
He had a green jacket
What kind of man was he
He had a secret family
He had a sharp and surreptitious
brain
What kind of man was he
Dead now
A gone man
What kind of man was he
He walked in the street below
To fill his plastic bag with snow
