Jimmy from across the Street

I take my wife to dinner
at a fancy place for us
to talk about money
because stocks have a virus
and we should move
money into silver and gold
in case we don’t die before
that rainy day comes

but first she asks
did I hear about Jimmy
from across the street
and I say he’s out of work
two months or more
and she says his wife’s
lost her job too and they
have kids in private school
shouldn’t we do something

and I ask what can we do
because Jimmy would never
take any help and she says
we could put cash in an
envelope in his mailbox
at night and he wouldn’t
know who to blame

just as something gross
on the half shell arrives
at our table with sauces
and I drop the whole idea
of talking about money
we’re lucky enough to have.
Stocks go up and go down
and jobs are lost and found.
We talk about Jimmy
from across the street
the rest of the night.

Donal Mahoney, nominated for Best of the Net and Pushcart prizes, Donal Mahoney has had poetry and fiction published in North America, Europe, Asia and Africa. Some of his work can be found by clicking here…