and another one's gone

He has a tattoo for every child
but not in that order

gap in his front teeth from
one prison, the crack
in his nose from another

maybe Serbia or
Bosnia, he can't
remember
since he's been
sober

he just says
he was in the army,
it's an easier
explanation

now he lives
in a bungalow,
watches food tv
with the one woman
whose babies
have his mother tongue.