Through it All

Love doesn’t have to be the kind you see in movies

Where kisses are savored on warm summer nights

Where two happy teenagers will make memories

As sweet as the honeysuckle

Sometimes love will make your heart break

When you watch your mother begin to forget.

Forget how she would sing old church hymns

As she pondered over a complex jigsaw puzzle

Forget her garden that was her secret escape

Among the vibrant tomatoes and prickly okra.

And no longer do I  hear the sound of skillet cornbread sizzling

Or the mechanic hum of her sewing machine late at night

Her hands no longer smell like bleach from laundry

Nor does her room overflow with coins she would collect

Her memory is fading like a flag that has weathered many storms

But she never forgets her love for me

Love is the reason she still  checks on me

Like I am her most precious cake baking in the oven

And the touch of her hand still resonates

With the compassion of a seasoned caretaker

Love is the foundation that stays intact when the house falls

When the past fades and the future is uncertian

It is the glue that keeps me together for her

When she can’t be there for herself

Love is cherishing the little moments in life

Sharing a laugh over a corny joke

And it is the feeling of hope when

The lyrics of “Swing Low Sweet Chariot”

Drifts In from the living room

One More Time