Raj, you beat me to it with the praise and appreciation for this ballad - but you didn't mention the photo at the end, so I get to say #AWESOME photo!!! The notes on napkins at the bedside of the dying man - what a powerful image - what an immense effort to capture and preserve his words, at the end.
I especially love this:

His memory may have been wobbly.
He did speak of abnormal things:
of acrobats with fast peristalsis
and wombats wearing fortunes in bling.

You have a gift for contrasting the darkest moments with the "nonsensical," which ultimately makes as much sense as anything.

I love the dispute (unspoken!) about the K vs the S.

One hallmark of great poetry and prose is the author's #ear. At a writer's workshop, way back when, @rhondak and I despaired over efforts to help a certain "gregory" write prose that didn't sound like square wooden wheels. His grammar was precise and correct, his sentences complete, but his prose so stilted, readers couldn't engage with his characters.

Some things cannot be taught. You have the "ear," @owasco, and the gift!