For something a little different, this issue’s member contribution is a poem. “I wrote this poem the other day in response to something my daughter-in-law said about her 20-month-old son hurting her feelings,” shares Sandy. “I smiled and said that she will feel that way for decades!” We think the images and emotions that Sandy’s poem evokes will make you smile, too!
Author bio:
Sandra R. Wolkoff, PhD, LCSW-R
Clinical Social Worker (private practice)
Glen Head, NY
Little Criminals
I think it starts early
This pain joy tug of war
The love and tears of motherhood
Whether planned or not
The conception, then
The pit, grape, plum, avocado, grapefruit, melon
The sweet fruit salad of fetal development
Grows, slowly and then quickly
Our insides pinched and poked by the frenetic fists and bony heels
That remind us that our guest
Is there, soon coming to take over our world.
Like the aliens of science fiction
Promising the enlightenment of super powers
Only to turn on us,
The bounty of these little strangers has a price tag
Our love, our joy, our souls become attached to these creatures
Our hearts beat as one, our very nerve endings invisibly linked
Their pain forever ours
Their laughter filling our belly
Their tears always wet on our cheeks.
Stumbling first steps, arms outstretched,
A hurried arrival into our embrace
Is forever stenciled on our skin
The first run, always away from us, fat little feet waddling to the steps, the hot stove, the front door, the electric outlet,
Changes our heart rhythms forever
For we know the danger that will always be there.
Can we forgive them
These little criminals
Who steal our tranquility
Take control of our thoughts
Inch into ever bigger pieces of our heart
Now filled with the promise of eternal devotion
And scarred with the endless slights, hurts and disappointments
As though brought on by a cheating lover
Whose happiness will be found in someone else’s arms.
*Please contact the author at sandy.wolkoff@gmail.com for permission to reprint.*
