Dorothy Mahoney

this one

I take my mother shopping and as I finish bagging her groceries, the cashier from the next till asks her how she’s doing.

Lousy.

Why?

My heart, my breathing, my legs.

The woman gives a sympathetic smile and asks, Is that your daughter from out of town?

No, this is that other one.

appraising
the persimmon
a thick peel never soft enough

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About the Author

Dorothy Mahoney is the author of several poetry books. Her book Ceaseless Rain (Palimpsest Press, 2020) includes haibun about hospice care, and The Inevitable (Red Moon Press, 2022) is an experimental novel consisting of 51 haibun and a flash story.

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