Page 31 of The Secret to Belonging

in your cardboard folder, you find five tickets

to carry you through the next twenty-four hours:

Los Angeles to Minneapolis

Minneapolis to New York

New York to London

London to Oslo

Oslo to Northern Norway, with three stops

on board the 747 to Minneapolis

you find your aisle seat in the center section

the plane is huge

you can’t see out the windows

once your backpack is stowed

and your seat belt is buckled

you open the pack of gum

pop a piece in your mouth

the mint tastes like all the apologies

your mother couldn’t speak

you cry again

you can’t see the tray or the magazines

in the seatback in front of you

you sob

what the hell were you thinking?

where the hell are you going?

Maura, a girl from Manhattan Beach

with a short haircut and a silver ear cuff

kneels down next to you

are you okay?

do you need anything?

you can’t respond

the flight attendant asks everyone