An arctic smile,
pockets full of tissues,
floral aromas mingled
with talc and perfume.

The waiting.

A line forming,
A line dwindling,
bottoms finding chairs,
and you're dead.

The reading.

Crying, sniffling,
snot flying,
you can taste it
in the air.

The prayers.

It feels like
the hospitals
all over again,
but for the last time.