On the way

On a Friday just before noon,
Nai-nai called me and said
“Yeh-yeh is on the way. Yeh-yeh is on the way.”
I wasn’t working and
I should have been there with Nai-nai to take care of Yeh-yeh,
but I wasn’t
I couldn’t.
After months and months of watching Yeh-yeh fail,
progressing from independence and strength
to bed-riden, tube-fed, and incontinent,
I needed a break.
So I dressed slowly and walked slowly over to their place.
By the time I got there,
Yeh-yeh had died already,
choking on the liquid food that went into his lungs.

This morning, when my wife left for her trip,
she told me to sleep,
but I got up
to see her on her way.