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Doing Time, Tidewater Beach

by Mary Lou Maloney  

We always tied our shoes
on the abandoned steps
at Tidewater Beach
one side halfway in the sand

David used to carry plastic buckets
pour salt water
over Mom's corned feet
wash seaweed off her toes.

I want him out of those
khaki two piece johnnies
those state issue T-shirts
and fake leather work boots.

I want to see him jump
on his Harley
rev those side handles
brace his back

kick into the starter
move like hell
onto Penders Beach
Ride that bike all the way

down the wooden stairs
run into the black-eyed surf
and scream so loud
the sharks will get out of the way.

It’s time.

By Mary Lou Maloney

Mary Lou Maloney has been a disability advocate for most of her life.  She started with her younger sister with Down Syndrome and then worked to establish one of the first group homes for developmentally disable people in Massachusetts.  Her advocacy work was the largest component of a career as a lobbyist on the state and federal levels.

While working with people with disabilities, Mary Lou found expression in writing poetry.  A major theme is her Irish roots, her mother who immigrated here in the ‘20s, and the people she met on her travels to Ireland.

The other theme throughout her writings is her family’s life in Rhode Island, which was significantly affected when her brother went to prison.  The visions of her dignified mother going through prison checkpoints are some of her better works.

Doing Time   Tidewater Beach reflects her coping with this sadness in her family life. Her email address: