~  Mother Dear, O Mother Dear
Mother dear, oh Mother dear, were you ever young?
How felt you on the day when love had just begun?
Did tulips drip from every branch and joy obscure the sun?
Did secret smiles once mold your hopes
Where lines of care and dread are ropes
That tell of bitter loss instead,
The smiles forgotten now and fled?
Like me, were you once mesmerized
Of blissfilled future, sunny skies,
Then saw the storm clouds gather round,
Felt the darkness, heard the sound
Of lighting charring all your dreams,
Each betrayal worse than last it seems?
Through heavy days and heavy thoughts,
Each step mechanically has brought
You to this day where now you live,
Those dreams forgotten, for it is
That dreams are fairy-castles built
And meant to evaporate and wilt.
Then, as you held each fragile child,
Did ghosts of dreams bring back a smile?
Forgotten dreams, once more reborn,
To die again before the dawn-
Unmourned, unnoticed, as time moved on,
Interred within your heart's sad song?
Mother dear, oh Mother dear, were we ever young?