Smallpox

My last night in Acapulco
I slept on the beach after
Swimming in the shark
Infested bay,
My friend Paul and I have
Spent part of our post-H.S.
Graduation summer with his
Family in Mexico City.
We ride the bus all the way
To Mexico City and later on
To Saltillo in the mountains
Above Monterrey at dawn,
Saltillo smells of fresh bread
And fresh air so we leave
The bus station and wander
About the markets.
When we re-board the bus
They are angry we walked
Around as there is a
Smallpox epidemic in town,
They isolate us on the bus
And at Laredo we are examined
By a border post doctor who
Looks at my back and sees
Bites from the sand fleas
On the beach at Acapulco.
The doctor shrugs and says he
Has never seen smallpox
But thinks the red bites
Are most likely not
Contagious,
He puts us back on the bus
To San Antonio and tells us
Each to check with our
Doctor when we get
Home and tell
About things
In Saltillo.