Donal Mahoney- Three Poems

Adopted Daughter

Miss Goody Two-Shoes'

sweaters aren’t too tight,

skirts aren’t too straight

and heels aren’t too high.

She’s a swan gliding 

in this small town library 

where old men sit at tables 

reading newspapers

from all over the world until

Miss Goody Two-Shoes

has another cart full of books

she must wheel between them

so she can put them away.

And when she does, the men

stop reading and smile

as their adopted daughter,

another Audrey Hepburn,

gracefully glides by.

A Fine Facility Like This

He’s not among the quick

and not among the dead.

He’s somewhere in between

he tells anyone who stops

his wheelchair in the halls 

of a fine facility like this.

He couldn’t make it 

on his own, his kids said,

so they brought him here.

His wife stuck post-it notes

all around the house

telling him what to do

and where to find things.

He might have made it.

He thought he didn’t need 

a fine facility like this 

with three hot meals and 

sheets he can't change. 

At night he has popcorn

then watches nightmares

in a fine facility like this.

Everybody Don't Have Somebody

The man in the ER,

sutured and bandaged,

told the nurse there wasn't

anyone she could call 

to give him a lift home.

He said he'd take a bus 

once he had a chance 

to check his wallet and see

if he had any money.

He didn’t have much

to begin with, he said,

and the guy who left him 

lying at the curb

probably took his money

along with his watch.

Otherwise why hit somebody

on the head from behind?

No other sensible reason.  

The man said he’d walk

if he didn’t have bus fare

because he’s living proof

everybody don't have 

somebody who’ll come 

and give you a lift home.

Donal Mahoney

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Donal Mahoney, a native of Chicago, lives in St. Louis, Missouri. His fiction and poetry have appeared in various publications, including The Wisconsin Review, The Kansas Quarterly, The South Carolina Review, The Christian Science Monitor, The Chicago Tribune and Commonweal. Some of his work can be found at http://eyeonlifemag.com/the-poetry-locksmith/donal-mahoney-poet.html#sthash.OSYzpgmQ.dpbs=