I wrote this when my daughter was 11 and one of her classmates lost her mother instantly in a car accident. At the time, I had been sick since My daughter was 8 years old and often times wondered if my presence on the planet was beneficial for her or not. I worked as much as possible and then slept a lot. My bedtime was before my child's, and I was hurting all the time, and therefore kind of grouchy. She would say, Mom it is like it is Friday everyday (which meant I was always tired and grouchy). We played board games in my bed or read to each other. She did her homework there and often we ate in bed with the dogs piled up there with us. Kids are so resilent. and she loved me so well through it all. OK the poem.
Suddenly Motherless at Eleven
OH young woman, not quite...
Who will teach you to eat well
and to love yourself?
Who will guide you through menarche
and the fights with your girlfriends?
What about that first love
and the first heartbreak?
Wear your seatbelt and brush your teeth.
And love yourself as your Mother
would if she were here.
Mother Love is BIG
and gentle
and never ceasing.
I'm sorry your Mother won't be here
when you hold your daughter for the first time
when you can know in your own heart
the fierceness of a Mother's love.
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