Mum

When your Mum is sadly gone
Think on
About the countless dinners on the table,
Clean sheets you slept in
Neat clothes, sweets and treats you were kept in
Holidays packed for and enjoyed
Hoovers and dusters deployed
Sympathy when you cried
Band aids and shoe polish applied
Christmas and birthday present giving
The perpetual running of everyday family living

Looking back it seems almost tragic
That we assumed all these things were somehow done by magic
It’s only when we fly the nest ourselves
We realise, often with some surprise
That life isn’t organised by a team of invisible elves

To let you flourish and be nourished and grow
Your Mum was always there
Clearing up, cheering up, bearing up
The unthanked, unsung and unconditional back room hero
Because although nobody actually asks them to
It’s what good Mums do

And when age takes it toll
And the tables are slowly turned
It’s down to us kids to return a little
Of what our Mums have surely earned

But for all her love or devotion or wealth
The biggest thing you have to thank Mum for
Is yourself.
Without her, you simply wouldn’t be
To love, to laugh, to feel and hear and see
And whilst now is a time of bereavement
What would really make her smile and feel it all worthwhile
Is to revel in what’s ahead, live life in her stead
And prove yourself her crowning achievement.