Monday, May 4, 2020

"Conversation with My Mother's Picture"--A Poem for Mother's Day

by Linda Rodriguez

As we approach Mother's Day, this time of year can be difficult for those of us who have lost our mothers. All the many reminders of things to buy for Mom and special places to take her on her special day can be bittersweet, if not downright painful.

Even if the loss is years in the past, the constant stress on the joys of celebrating mothers who are still alive and available to their children can bring the old pang of grief back in all its intensity. So this poem is for all of us whose mothers are gone and paining us once again with their loss, just so we can know that others out there are suffering the same suddenly renewed grief and that we are not alone.



CONVERSATION WITH MY MOTHER’S PICTURE

You and Dad were entirely happy here—
you in purple miniskirt, white vest and tights
(you always wore what was already too young
for me), Dad in purple striped pants,
a Kansas State newsboy’s cap
made for a bigger man’s head.
You both held Wildcat flags and megaphones
to cheer the football team who,
like the rest of the college, despised you
middle-aged townies, arranging for their penicillin
and pregnancy tests and selling them
cameras and stereos at deep discount.
But you were happy
in this picture, before they found
oat-cells in your lungs.

After the verdict, he took you to Disneyland,
this man who married you and your five children
when I was fifteen. He took you cross-country
to visit your family, unseen
since your messy divorce.
He took you to St. Louis
and Six Flags Over Texas and to Topeka
for radiation treatments.
I don’t think he ever believed
you could die. Now he’s going
the same way. And none of us
live in that Wildcat town with the man
who earned his “Dad” the hard way
from suspicious kids and nursed
your last days. For me, this new dying
brings back yours, leaving me only this image
of you both cheering for lucky winners.

Published in Heart’s Migration (Tia Chucha Press, 2009)

10 comments:

  1. Oh, Linda, this is absolutely beautiful. I'm weeping.

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  2. Lovely. It is such a bittersweet time for us "orphans."

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  3. Annette, thank you. I'm glad you liked it.

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  4. Thank you, Margaret. If I'd been thinking, I'd have used one of your gorgeous flower photos to illustrate it.

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  5. Carla, that's so true. I have terrific kids who celebrate me on Mother's Day, but only the oldest knew my mother and then just barely. She died so young, and we all missed so much.

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  6. Poignant indeed. A tribute to a wonderful relationship.

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  7. Linda, this is so powerful. Poignant. You put so much into so few words.
    Hope you and your family are doing well.

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  8. Thank you, Shari. I'm glad you liked it.

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