Mother

From a fragile speck of life in your womb,

I fulfill the promise of Creation's majesty;

Through you, and then through me and mine,

Life's immortality runs, timelessly.

Every hope I ever hope amid my troubles,

Was born in your unfailing confidence in me;

My life is a million steps, a thousand stumbles,

Not a single one of them for me were lonely.

Every smile this wayward son ever smiled,

Was born in your gift of life to this boy;

All else is measured in hours and days whiled,

But my time with you is measured in joy.

All my acts of compassion for my brothers,

Were by contagion from your generosity;

Always dissolving yourself in all others,

Your toil-worn fingers are miracles to me.

Every deeper meaning I sought to Life's dare,

Was already there in your wisdom maternal;

As I grow older, deeper, and more aware,

You grow younger, wiser, and more eternal.

Every wound that ever ripped me apart,

Was healed by your immeasurable caring;

While vultures gather to gnaw at my heart,

Your embrace warms the chill of my being.

I, the staggering knight in rusted armor,

Want nothing but to rest my head so weary;

To cease jousting with windmills forever,

Into your soothing lullaby my soul to bury.

Like waves on a sandy beach crashing,

Your love washes over my grainy being;

The terrible tempests always assaulting,

Are naught against your bosom hugging.

You own a triumphal spot in my heart,

That no pretty lassie dare lay claim to;

Every other lacy love I gave but a part,

Just threads in a tapestry woven by you.

Many things have I lost and seen die,

But you were always there, beside me;

Dreams vanish like smoke into the sky,

Yet for me, your love is, was, and will be.

Tara, Laguna, and the Golden Dome are nothing,

Compared to you calling out "dinner" to me;

Call it God or Heaven or unknown something,

Your Peace and Love are what I believe and see.

All the great poets, bards, and minstrels,

Stand mute beside your comforting voice;

You are like an angel among mere mortals,

That the Creator surely blessed by choice.

They say that there is no place like home,

I say that there is no home without Mother;

They say where the heart is, there is home,

I say your heart and mine abide together.

Every page is an instance in the Book of Life,

Most dispense words of measured madness;

While the insane universe echoes with strife,

There remains one sacred word among us:

Mother.