Divine Motherhood

What lay before me
was an unparalleled gift—
This much was clear.
I vowed to release the universe
from another prayer’s burden,
to shower it instead
with my soul’s eternal grace.

Tiny fingers clinging to mine,
brand new lives unfolding
in the unfamiliar scent
of divine motherhood.

The bliss of marriage—
and miracle of twins
hard-won from a lifetime of struggle,
rendered them even more dear.
For all the dark feelings
that solitude harbored
wiped clean in an instant
with radiant light.

Magnanimous beyond measure,
fate gifted me anew,
a source of immense joy
though tinged with guilt
for this third beam of life.

Her innocence
swathed in strength from the start,
evoked the tenacity needed
for her to pen her own song.

Seasons danced
in unbridled shades of childhood,
weaving from the mundane
a tapestry of joy.
But nothing lasts forever
as the old adage goes.

The twins’ departure
to forge their own paths
left a void too immense
for my heart to withstand.
And yet her presence,
an apothecary of sorts,
offered a sense of reprieve,
delaying the inevitable.

I make good on my vow,
asking not for a gift—
But as the tender fabric
begins to fray,
do I falter by praying
to safeguard my child,
as she steps from my shadow
into her light?

Today her absence
threatens my glory
turning the clock back
to quieter years.
How does one brace
for the harshness of winter
when the echo of spring
is all that one hears?

Moving our daughter into her dorm.
August, 2024

Landing page photo:
Many moons ago in Harbour Island, Bahamas,
Photo credit: Bernardo de Albergaria