for my wife, nalani, and our 6-month-old daughter, kaikainali’i, hawai’i 2014

[we] take
kaikainali’i to
the pediatrician—
outbreak of

enterovirus D68
in new york—
the nurse
recites the

vaccines and
expiration dates—
outbreak of
chikungunya in

the caribbean
florida, tokelau—
nalani holds
kaikainali’i and

sings a
mele [we]
learned during
hapai class

at kokua
kalihi valley—
outbreak of
dengue fever

in china,
and japan—
the nurse
rubs alcohol

onto kaikainali’i’s
thighs—quick
shoots needle—
outbreak of

west nile
virus in
texas, california—
kaikainali’i screams—

waterborne,
airborne,
foodborne,
insectborne—

the nurse
wipes blood
drops with
cotton balls,

puts astronaut
snoopy bandaids—
outbreak of
ebola in

liberia, sierra
leone, guinea—
at home
we check

her temperature—
100°—when
the planet
warms, [our]

bodies host
fever chains
of transmission—
no child

born in  
this fourth
era of
disease will

be immune—
at dawn
kaikainali’i’s fever
breaks—[our]

bodies drowning
in sweat—

Image by NIAID