A Mother

She drinks in the sobs

Of her child.

She comforts and consoles.

She brushes away the tears,

From a plump little face.

She kisses away the hurt,

And the sorrows of a second.

She firmly tells the child, "No."

Then she distracts with a toy.

She softly sings her darling to sleep,

On those fearsome nights

When only a mother's voice

Can comfort her child.

She cleans a child's muddy clothes

Without a word of thanks.

~

And as her child grows

She consoles the hurt of minutes -

The whiplash of a careless comment;

The sting of not being able to go;

The laughing faces of her child's peers.

She leads her child to safer waters,

Steering by example.

And when her child is hurt,

Truly hurt,

She hurts as well;

And her heart aches

For the wants of her growing child.

~

And when her child leaves

She gets the front row seat;

To watch the play unfold.

And if the play shows danger,

For her grown up child,

She simply slips back stage

And helps her child iron

The kinks out of their play.

~

And why does she do all this?

She does it because she loves

Her little child

With the tenderness of a butterfly

With the strength of an elephant

And with the heart of a lion.

What a wonderful love

Is the love of a mother!

 Poem 7 ~ 2011