BARBARA’S

wearing dark glasses
with thick frames
and her hair’s wrapped
in a black scarf
again. You try not to look.
Last time, two ribs
were cracked, a tooth
knocked loose. The phone
rings and she stops
typing. You pick it
up, hold your hand
over the mouthpiece.
“It’s your husband.”
She shakes her head,
runs into the rest room.
You take the message,
hang up and follow her.
Leaning over the sink,
she lifts the scarf. Her fingers
trace a jagged line of stitches
that splits her forehead
in half. You walk over,
rub the back of her neck.
“Least when he’s hitting me,
he leaves our kids alone.”
You look in the mirror, cringe.

Tony Gloeggler is a lifelong resident of NYC who managed group homes for the mentally challenged for over 40 years. Poems have recently appeared in Rattle, BODY, and Vox Populi. His collection, What Kind Of Man, with NYQ Books, was a finalist for the 2021 Paterson Poetry Prize, and his new book, Here On Earth, came out with NYQ Books at the beginning of 2026.