Linda Kulp Trout

Thursday, October 3, 2019

Happy Birthday, Mom!

Today would have been my mother's 83rd. birthday. She has been gone for more than six years, but I still think of her every day.  Although the scene in the poem I'm sharing today never actually happened, it is a love poem to my mother, part true, part the way I wish things would have been.

Mom was often lost in her thoughts.  I regret never asking her about her dreams. I'm sure she had some. She liked to write. She enjoyed music and dancing. She loved animals. One time she told me that she wanted to go to Africa to see the lions in the wild.  It never happened.

By the time Mom was in her early seventies, she had dementia. She was only 76 (just twelve years older than me) when she passed away. I think about that a lot. It both motivates and scares me, and it's one of the reasons I keep working toward my writing dreams.  Mom inspired me more than she ever knew.  She did the best she knew how, and I'm grateful for the good times we shared.
 This poem is for her.

A Vow

staring out the window it seems
my mother is lost somewhere between
us and her own private dreams

she once told me she'd like to see
Africa where lions live uncaged-- free
just the way they were meant to be

and she wants to write a book someday
but she's just to busy to start it today
with kids to raise and bills to pay--

sometimes I think she secretly wishes
for freedom from housework, diapers, dishes
always the giver of goodnight kisses--

suddenly seeing me standing there,
she calls me over to her chair--
and points to a piece of sky where

the Evening Star waits with a vow--anything
is possible-- her loving smile says everything
as she beings to sing--

-Linda Kulp Trout


A big thank you to Cheriee for hosting today's Poetry Friday at Library Matters. 

14 comments:

  1. I lost my dad two years ago, and I think about him every day. So many things I should have asked him when I had the chance! As you say, these experiences with mortality can be so motivating, even if they do sometimes scare and sadness us.

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    1. I agree with you, Jane. Thank you for stopping by.

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  2. Sweet poem for your mother, Linda, for all mothers! How much we want to go back and ask more questions!

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    1. Thank you, Linda Yes, if only I could go back, there's so much I'd like to know.

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  3. Such a lovely, poignant poem. I wondered about my mom's dreams too. She was such a practical person, always so busy, that there wasn't much time to discuss dreams. Love how your poem ends, with the Evening Star.

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  4. I can feel the love in this poem Linda. This part of your poem especially connected with me,
    sometimes I think she secretly wishes
    for freedom from housework, diapers, dishes
    always the giver of goodnight kisses

    My mother left us three years ago. I too grieve for her and all the questions I should have asked.

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    1. Cheriee, I know what you mean. I don't think we ever really stop missing them.

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  5. Such a beautiful poem, full of love for your mother.

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  6. I think your poem is such a beautiful tribute to your Mom, Linda.

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