BENARES 1990/

A WOMAN REMEMBERS HER MOTHER WHILE BATHING IN THE RIVER.

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

The ablutions will
Not bring you added
Beauty, Mother said,

 

But bathe and feel the
Badness wash away.
You remember her

 

Words. The river was
Always the same. You
Thought you stepped in the

 

Same place time after
Time. You feel her hands
Touch yours; sense the dark

 

Water from her cupped
Hands pour over you.
Life is life, she would

 

Say, everlasting,
Unfolding like a
Puzzle never to

 

Be solved. She smiled like
The dawn sun; her warmth
Drove the world’s coldness

 

Away for days at
A time. Now the world
Has won and she has

 

Gone. Akara, she
Would say in your dreams,
Go to the water,

 

The river, bathe there.
And you seeing the
Sun on the water’s

 

Skin like a mother’s
Kiss, would enter the
Water and sense your

 

Mother’s spirit there
Beside you, her words
In the air, her touch,

 

Her smile in the sun’s
Bright embracing glare.

Reviews

[just rose.]

Well, I can speak to this one to some degree because my whole life is about trying to capture my mother's spirit even for an instant. I love the line and stanza breaks here, the quiet imagery, the almost prayer-like quality of this piece. I am most compelled by the use of the word ablution, implying a holiness. It's a word I love and you never get to use it much, given that if you're doing an ablution and not just a plain bath, you'd better be serious about it. :) The use of the word "badness" suggests a little girl listening to and remembering her mother explaining things in simple terms. Well done as always Terry. Your poems are among my very favorite reads here.

[Coyote Poetry]

Photo and words are beautiful. The gentle and kind story was brought to life with your words. The memory of young can be awoke to bring back the good days. A outstanding poem.
Coyote