i.
I hold the door open for an old man.
He inches by close enough to smell.
ii.
As girl scouts singing carols
at the nursing home the smell
invaded our o mouths; we left
with pebbles of aluminum walker
lodged in each nostril.
i.
I start to gag when the line
behind us is four people deep.
ii.
At home we sewed badges on our sashes,
and didn't talk about the smell.