Ramadan in America
It’s Ramadan
and late one evening
I walk by a mosque
and hear little girls
laughing on the sidewalk,
walking in circles talking
about what they want to eat.
In America it’s nice to hear
joy among our Muslims,
a counterpoint we need
in light of all the news.
I wish I had the guts to call
an old friend from Pakistan
I haven’t seen in 40 years.
He had nine children, a son
and eight daughters.
His little girls laughed
outside his house the night
we had come for dinner,
a chorus like the one
I heard again tonight
outside that mosque.
I’d like to ask him
what’s happening
in our world but why
embarrass both of us.
Why ask a question
neither one of us
can answer.
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…
Nailed at, again.