Contributor: Donal Mahoney

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It always begins
like indigestion,
slowly at first,
then full bore.
Either way,
I need relief,
no question.

But no antacid
can abort a poem
so I have to stop
and take dictation.

I’m no Matthew, Mark
Luke or John.
They wrote the Gospels
by Divine Inspiration.
I’m on my own;
I have to listen.

So when the words begin
I grab my quill.
I have no choice.
I have to stop
and take dictation.


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Donal Mahoney lives in St. Louis, Missouri.