A Singular Repast

We are to each other now

many decades later

what we were the day 

we got married, a couple 

at the kitchen table on 

a summer night—she  

a slice of watermelon, 

corners touching the ceiling,

covering my face in juice 

and I the corn she butters 

before she devours it. 

We eat as fast as we can.

Donal Mahoney

Makes Forever Shorter

When a bullet goes in

and doesn’t come out

you read about it 

in the paper, hear 

about it on TV.

A person takes a bullet

near the heart and learns 

a surgeon can't remove it. 

It's part of him forever. 

Happens like a drive-by

shooting when a loved one 

makes a comment no

apology can remove.

The loved one doesn't

know there’s a problem, 

doesn’t realize lightning

through the cerebellum  

is by far a better option. 

Doesn't let the victim linger. 

Makes forever shorter.

Donal Mahoney

The Canyon Dwellers

There’s this canyon 

between two cliffs

and Tim Boyd has a foot

planted on each cliff.

He’s spread-eagled 

but very steady.

He's been stretched

over the canyon since 

he got back from Iraq.

After he took his position,

he thought someone 

would eventually look up.

There are others

spread over the canyon

in front of Tim. 

They’ve been there

since Viet Nam and

getting a bit wobbly.

In back of Tim

are the new arrivals

spread-eagled as well.

They’re fresh from

Afghanistan and they're

getting their feet set. 

The rest of us below

have jobs and are busy

with families and lives. 

When a canyon dweller falls 

and makes a terrible mess, 

we find the time to look up.

Donal Mahoney