As you worry
About your classmates transforming,
Becoming smarter, stronger or faster than you,
Maybe even better than you...
As you fret
About your clothes making you look chubby
Because you still have some baby fat,
And the mean kids at school make fun of it...
As you wonder
If you're good enough to start the next game,
Or skilled enough to make the team next year,
Or smart enough for the science program...
As you agonize
Over a project that was harder than expected,
Or homework that kept you up past midnight,
Or a bad grade on a tough test...
As you watch
Your childhood friend abandon you,
Too afraid to stand at your side
When you go up against a bully...
Know this...
I cry inside when your tears flow.
I feel your failures as if they were my own.
I clench my fist with each injustice.
My heart breaks with yours.
I will
Always hide it from you,
Because you don't need me to fret.
You don't need to worry about me.
I will
Encourage you to climb with all your might,
To learn from your falls and your failures,
To never give up on your dreams.
I will
Warn you about friends caught in the tornado,
Being pulled in all directions, out of their control.
Patience, the storm will reveal your true friends.
I will
Make you realize you're a lion in this jungle.
Bullies and fake friends are weak sheep,
And lions never worry about sheep.
And if none of that works...
I will always listen.
I will always be here.
I will always love you.
Feels like a mother's pledge to her child. Lovely.
ReplyDeleteThanks Olga. :-D
DeleteBeautiful. I know someone who might like to read this to give her strength :)
ReplyDeletePlease share Jemima!
DeleteThis is truly lovely. The mother I wish I had.
ReplyDeleteAwe... Hugs to you, Hon.
DeleteLovely - a deep connection between these two shines through
ReplyDeleteThank you Jemi. :-D
DeleteI like to think it is God speaking. :-)
ReplyDeleteYou know, my husband once said...imaging all the things God has to suffer as he watches over all of us. People usually don't thinks about God that way.
DeleteSplendid! As a mother, I felt this poem to my core. Thank you so much for sharing it with us!
ReplyDeleteThanks to you L.G! :-D
DeleteMy son experienced bullying in school. It was a horrific time for both of us. Him because he didn't know how to handle it and me, because I didn't know how to help.
ReplyDeleteIt's a wonderful poem and a gift to all of us, thank you!
Oh Yolanda... my son too. I stood awake to late hours wondering what I could say to him to give him strength and courage to get through it. It's such a touch time for kids...
DeleteGod speaking? That's a lovely thought Roland. This lady is a lady of strength and a wonderful mother. What a beautiful poem for FOOTPRINTS. It should be shared far and wide.
ReplyDeleteThanks Tanya Miranda for this beautiful ode to motherhood.
Denise
Thank you Denise. :-D
DeleteHi,
ReplyDeleteAs I read your poem I thought of a mother giving encouraging words to her child and that child could be of any age. I thought of support or being supportive. I thought of hope where a person reads the words and receives hope to continue on their journey.
Have a Merry Christmas and a great crossover into 2020.
Shalom aleichem,
Pat G
Thanks Pat, and a Merry Christmas to you too! :-D
DeleteHi Tanya
ReplyDeleteSuch a beautiful poem. And the last lines...I will listen. How we need more listeners.
Listening is so, so, so important. Thanks for reading my entry, Sonia! :-D
DeleteBullies are generally insecure. They try to make themselves feel big by making others feel small. The best thing a parent can do is listen and be supportive. Mine weren't. They always wondered what I did to "make" people bully me.
ReplyDeleteRegarding the term "baby fat," some people are just plain fat, and there's nothing wrong with that. I always wanted my "baby" fat to go away and developed an eating disorder. We as a society need to stop seeing fat as the worst thing a person can possibly be.
Alas... bullies tend to have a bottomless toolbox of criticisms. Too fat, too skinny, too short, too tall... Like the rest, I tell my kids to ignore what they say. I cannot control society, I can only arm my kids with skills necessary to handle bullies. And I've made them aware that bullying doesn't stop as you grow older, it just becomes more subtle.
DeleteHi Tanya - this was quite delightful ... I don't have children - but can definitely feel how a child, and how you as a mother would feel ...
ReplyDeleteI too feel the poem should be shared far and wide. You're right in your last sentence ... bullying carries on in normal life ... coming at us from all angles.
Excellent poem - congratulations ... and cheers Hilary
Thanks Hilary, glad you like it. :-D
DeleteA genuine message of true love. Thanks for writing it.
ReplyDeleteThank you! I'm so glad you enjoyed it.
DeleteA powerful message of love and strength, thank you for sharing. As a mother I relate to every word!
ReplyDeleteWishing you all the joys of the season and a happy New Year 2020.
Thank you Nilanjana. I hope you had a happy holiday season!
DeleteAn effective poem demonstrating the importance of support and encouragement, whatever path is pursued. Although, I read this wondering if the 'I' was a spiritual being, mother, partner, sibling, friend, all fit too. Excellent poem, Tanya.
ReplyDeleteThank you Roland. The "I" can certainly be anyone.
DeleteAn excellent poem, Tanya. Happy Holidays
ReplyDeleteThank you Christopher. I hope your holiday season was a pleasant one.
DeleteWe all cherish moms like these. Thank you for the beautiful reminder of how much they mean in our lives.
ReplyDeleteThank you Tanya for this warm poem. We mothers and fathers have to pave the way for our children and hopefully engage in making the world a better place for them.
ReplyDeleteBeautifully written. Effective pace, rhythm and chorus. Well done.
Happy Holiday writing.
You know, that part about being a lion and not worrying about sheep... that's something I hear my husband tell my kids over and over. It takes a village...
DeleteYour poem is very special. Kids don't realize how much their parents are there for them too often. It's possible they don't realize until they, themselves, are parents!
ReplyDeleteOh how we suffer. Makes me think of all the times I made my parents suffer.
DeleteI squirmed a little at the start as it brought back more of my own uncomfortable adolescence than that of my sons! It's a beautiful expression of how a mom feels, though.
ReplyDeleteOh Rebecca, those childhood memories of being bullied never really go away. I have a few of my own, and they're as clear as if it happened yesterday...
DeleteBeautiful words, so meaningful - gives me hope.
ReplyDeleteYay! I'll take that!!! :-D
Delete