Mother's Kisses

When I was small I would run and run
Until my legs and arms sped faster
Than my little body could navigate.
Then, a very moveable force came upon
An immovable object, to my legs' chagrin.
Then, my mommy would kiss the booboos away
With the magic elixir that only mothers possess.
Is that a woman's birthright, or is it bestowed
In some secret rite to mark the passage from
Maiden to matron? She was Woman and all women
Not knowing what else there might be
Not understanding that all others would deny
To me the soothing caress of healing power.

When I was a stripling, conflict with
Paternal power grew large to fill my world.
Confused between desiring approval and receiving none
But for the echo I could be of his frustrated dreams.
Still, the magic from mother's touch sustained me through
Barbs and arguments and capitulations and victories.
Regardless, there was only one way out, all roads but this,
Anywhere but here; and so I was gone with neither force
To guide or protect. A wanderer without a compass,
A seeker without a clue, a sailor without the stars.

Now, with the weariness of battle-scarred veterans
Telling tales of long-forgotten wars and deeds,
We can face each other again, and both sorely miss
The life force that once glued us tight together.
All that remains is the sapling, now sturdy,
With wandering branches gently enfolding
The scant traces of long ago children, who
Danced and played in its comforting shade.