Wildflower Writes

Dedicated to Karen Johnston The doctor said, “no kids” Your polio forbids You were ready to fight I was born, in the rite Of motherhood Under your guidance Words became sentence They said I was bright You taught me to write I was three Every question I asked I was then tasked To tell what I think “Look it up” with a wink An answer You gave me freedom To explore wisdom Friendships and the world Hopes slowly uncurled And life Your strength displayed You weren’t afraid To speak your mind To do what was kind And right You provided meals To talk of ordeals A place to unwind Home ever enshrined In my heart You gave the right to choose Present for all debuts Cheering at each game To everything you came My biggest fan As an adult I received The best gift achieved My mom as my friend To listen and commend And advise I admire your courage In living out wordage Literature and theatre Loving life as actor Of your story As I bid adieu Know I love you And truly thank you For all that you d...

What does the ideal mom look like? Is it June Cleaver, wearing pearls while she vacuums and having dinner ready when dad walks in the door? Is it Lucy Ricardo, devoted mother still looking for her next big break on stage or screen, or at least a good adventure? Is it Roseanne Connor, keeping her kids in line with sharp remarks and always speaking her mind? Is it Abby O’Neil, the vegan, homeschooling, all-natural mom from Dharma & Greg who walks around in overalls and burns incense? Is it Reba Hart, a single working mom dealing with her teenage daughter’s pregnancy and her ex-husband’s new wife? Every mom has to decide for herself what motherhood is going to look like. For most people, no one is going to be harder on mom than she is on herself. As times change, society’s expectations of the role of mother change and evolve with them. I don’t know if there is any other time in history that has so many potential expectations of motherhood. Moms are supposed to be totally devoted t...