Donal Mahoney- Three Poems

What a Country!

In America we say

we get the government 

we deserve.

That’s been true

for the past eight years.

Barring something unforeseen

and looking at our two 

presumptive nominees,

we will again

get the government 

we deserve for four

or more years.

Yakov Smirnoff

probably said it best:

"What a country!”

War Feasts Forever

A refugee from another country tells me  

people thrive on proving their beliefs 

more than understanding one another.

They will let a stereotype fall on others

like a cheap dress as long as it fits 

the image of someone they’ve created.

             

People are more dangerous when their rules 

are more important than their values, he says. 

Belief is like water and must be transparent. 

If people accept those who are different,

everyone sits down to a banquet of peace.

Otherwise war feasts forever. 

A Good Customer

I saw Al once a month

for 30 years, maybe more,

doing business together.

He retired to hunt bear 

in Alaska, hook Tarpon 

in Florida, golf in Scotland.

He had it all planned.

Nothing would stop him.

Months later I learned

doctors said he had

cancer of the blood.

The outlook was bleak.

I called Al and he said 

six months, maybe a year

of chemo. No guarantees.

But he’d beat it.

A year later Al called,

said the chemo had worked.

He was cured and was 

going on a trip fishing.

We agreed to have lunch 

when he got back.

He said he’d call me.

Al called when he got back 

but the news wasn’t good.

His blood was fine but 

doctors found a tumor, 

a big one on his brain, 

no way to operate, likely

malignant, more chemo. 

We agreed to have lunch later.

He’d give me a ring.

We never had lunch, of course,

but I met Al’s wife at the wake 

six months or so later.

She said Al had mentioned me

many times over the years.

She thanked me many times

for being a good customer.

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=