The Bond

The Bond
To my Mother

Mothers are the bond that together tie,
All those who make up our families;
And in old age Mothers are the glue,
That holds, however tenuously, the unit,
The children, grandchildren and greats;
That causes them to adhere together,
That keeps our communication flowing,
To gather together, at grandma's house,
At Christmas, Thanksgiving, July fourth,
And at times when joys are celebrated,
Or sorrows, or apprehension, shared.

My Mom is now in the waning years,
And three generations now follow her,
Through this fleet journey we call life.
And how much of earth is left to her,
We do not know, but know it is shorter,
And more uncertain, than ever before.
Age has made its mark upon her, sure,
But within her aging body that spirit,
The essence of her being, her beauty,
Endures, strong, vibrant, undiminished.
How alive she makes days long gone,
As though they were mere yesterdays!
And how deftly she smooths temporal
Strife, even threatening, between us,
And keeps us together, even as the Sun
Begins to sink swift upon her horizon.
What power is there that makes her so,
That heals wounds, mends differences,
Binds us strongly together, even as we
Go, increasingly, down separate paths?

And when our Mothers are no more,
Passing to that ethereal shore beyond,
What, then, shall constitute our bond?
To what do we owe the duty, or the time,
To gather together as we did before?
The glue, the binder, the common Soul,
Whom we all held as our anchor of life,
Having passed beyond, we shall then,
Reconstitute ourselves into new bonds,
Each in the loving sway of the Mother,
Who will become the tie that binds us,
Unstated and often unobserved, strong,
Loving, healing, forgiving, smoothing,
Together, each branch of the old unit,
Into those new cohesive families, held,
Each, together with the love of Mother,
As it has always been and will always,
Throughout the ages of humankind, be.

I am so thankful that my Mother, my Mom, has been the bond that ties us all together. And now, more than ever before, I realize the strength which fills Mothers with that special love and quiet, determined spirit which they possess, often quite unnoticed. I hope that you will not overlook, in your Mother, that spirit and grace which makes her all that she is to your family. May the Lord bless my Mom, and your Mom, and all Mom's everywhere! They are, indeed, a special and unique Gift of God!