Minnie The Moocher Poem by Sidi Mahtrow

Written in response to: Lonely grey lady at McDonalds

She has hunched over shoulders, looks under the weather
Grey streaked and unbrushed hair
Wears old worn out shoes and threadbare sweater
Seems lonely and lost, filled with despair

Lips move without sound, hands gesture at no one,
No one's close by, no one's around
Lonely old lady, so restless and winsome
Sadness and sorrow seems to surround

Sitting for hours, alone, sipping one coffee
Watching other customers come and go
Peering into other's lives, staring intently
As if she could know them by watching them so

Two tables over, another lady is watching
The old lady talking to no one, and then,
Rises and walks to her side, smiling and nodding
Gives to her, her own sandwich and then pats her hand

Grey lady accepts it without saying a word
Nods slightly to acknowledge the kindness
Seems nervous and skittish, eyes like a wild bird
Stares into space, gaze distant and mindless

Aura of emptiness abounds within and around her
As she painfully rises and prepares to depart
Her invisible companions, talk and surround her
As she shuffles away, her life in her cart

Grey lady leaves me with a sense of wonder
That some people, so lonely, suffer so much
It seems indifferent fate, shreds some lives asunder
While blessing others with caring families warm touch

Most people live, complacent and uncaring
Of the family and friends that surround them
While many grey ladies exist, gesturing and staring
Sentenced for life in their own private sanctum
David Whalen