Little mannerisms can cut across time, cultural and family lines, and miles of ocean.

1953

Arms outstretched,
Intense blue eyes
Boring into his hapless
Hunting-story
Victim,
Bill O’Neill
Leans forward;
A lopsided scarecrow
Wearing a faded baseball cap
That valiantly attempts to
Conceal wisps of grey;
The only thing
Focused on a tale
Punctuated with,
“Know what I mean?”

2003

Bill’s gone, but across
The Foam his cousin
Pans Dublin’s busy streets;
The camcorder pausing
To capture the familiar
Alien accents of
Three young women
Standing on a street corner,
Talking.
One leans forward,
A rosy-cheeked,
Red-haired mannequin with
Intense blue eyes that
Highlight her words,
“Know what I mean?”