My mother is the strongest woman I know
On this day of days
Mother’s Day
I would like to pay tribute to her
My mother is
The most radiant woman in the world
I would like to simply say
Hello
Mom
Thank you for bringing me into this life
Thank you for giving me life
You were always there when I needed you
You were always a shoulder to cry on
Arms to hold me
Lips to kiss away my tears
My mom nurtured me when I was a child
Supported me when I was a young woman
Went through my sulky teenage phase
Right by my side and didn’t bat an eye
Or raise a fuss
My mother is the strongest woman I know
My mother is the most
Beautiful woman I have ever seen
Inside and outside
My mother is the smartest kindest
strongest woman I have ever known
She has never given up on me even in my darkest hours
On this
The most special of holidays
Mother’s Day
I would like to pay tribute to her
Even when her hands are covered in barbecue sauce or urine
I still want them to be reaching for me
Even when she is beyond resuscitation
and her ribs have been broken by the paramedics
I want her to be thinking
Only of me
My mother has an amazing track record
Of caring for others
Especially animals
Which she loved
Our Town had a pet shelter
She was a volunteer
You could barely manage to pry her hands off the kittens
My beautiful hardworking mother
would have to be hustled out the door
She would almost always exit weeping
Because that is just the kind of mother she was:
Everlasting
My mother is the most resilient woman in the galaxy
On this momentous occasion I would like to honour her
I remember this Town’s early years. I remember most clearly the friendly ducks in the public garden. Now when I wake up I must battle the feeling of having been transplanted overnight to an enemy’s house with no food or water or bedding and a centreless sun burning through the holes in the roof.
My mother rose every morning and met the world
with her true and naked face
And her long porny nails
My mother overcame the raw material of her life
and flourished
Intolerable to imagine
Her flight from this world
Today I would like to say
Thank you
Mother
For always standing by my side
For always having my best interests at heart
For always putting my needs
First
For always putting me
First
For always
Holding
My body in front of hers
Like a shield