Donna and Her Killer

by John Grey

You've heard he was
legally drunk and then some,
that he'd been up on DUI charges
at least five times previously
and lost his license once.

Strange how his life
bursts with more and more information
while you struggle to remember
if Donna's eyes were brown or green.

He's the youngest of three,
mediocre at school,
can't hold down a job.
And Donna was...
what was Donna exactly?

You see him in the dock,
lace rumpled, lips twittering,
nose snorting, fingers tapping.
You try to picture Donna
but the image has a hard time coming.

As always,
when it comes to details,
it's the living,
not the loving,
who prevail.