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My sister has an artificial knee
it’s plastic and smooth like a toy Easter egg
painted the color of a Scotswoman’s fingernail
it has a metal hinge
straight pants don’t fit over the jaw
it holds a prosthesis but doesn’t bend
in the place of a lower leg there’s a wooden peg
she walks with a sailor’s limp
ka-thump ka-thump
like worrying a wood plank floor it squeaks
physical therapy’s over at least for now
this is as good as it can be
God bless her
the other knee is doing okay this far.