Mothers have been in the news recently, putting themselves on the line to protect others. I wrote this poem many years ago, and it still feels relevant.
Epiphanies while Holding Babies
1.
I once heard mothers declare
without a second thought
they would give their lives
to save their children.
Romantic hyperbole
it seemed, until,
stroking my infant’s hair
I recognized what passes as
small talk
among mothers:
“They grow up so quickly.”
“Look at all those teeth.”
“I’d give my life to save my child.”
Chit-chat about the obvious.
2.
Cradled in a rocking chair,
newborn son in my arms,
radio reporting a war,
I have a thought new to me,
old to mothers of sons.
All of the young men killing and dying
are every one of them
someone’s baby boy.
Achieving world peace is not
a dreamy ideal,
but immediate necessity –
as much a part of my to-do list
as washing the diapers
and paying the bills.
~~
Nomadic Noesis 