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In Praise of Mothers
Women are the mothers who bear forth the possibility of the world.
A mother’s day poem for all the women who have given birth to the world. Mother’s Day celebrates the necessity of women,
not just for life,
but for showing us how to live.
In some Jewish communities, there is a tradition on Passover that only women can light the candles to begin the celebration. Because, for a festival commemorating a new life for an entire people, they begin by acknowledging that, if it wasn’t for the women, they would have never realized that new life.
It is women who make life possible.
It is women who bear forth existence.
It is women who labor to produce love, mercy, justice, healing, and hope.
It is women who create the world.
It is women who are the mothers not just of life, but of what it means to live.
As a collective, we ought to acknowledge the humans who embodied such a prerogative.
And for those of us fortunate enough, we should also acknowledge those who have made our specific existence possible — to be part of that wondrous whole that women given birth to.
This poem celebrates motherhood based on my specific experience, but hopefully also captures something of the universal motherhood that makes life and hope possible in the first place.
For Mother, Tricia.
Look, I can tie my shoes! Well,
I just slip them on now,
But at least I know how.
My mom showed me how to do that.
I may even make
The best cookies in the world.
Well, at least I think so.
Because my mom showed me how to do that.
For some reason, I love taking walks.
I love being
Outside and feeling small amongst the earth.
Yes, my mom showed me how to do that.
I can read. I can do basic math. I have
Been taught the art of knowing
How to learn; the discipline
Of being curious.
My mom showed me how to…
