Mom, On Her Birthday

Mom, On Her Birthday

Heaven not so far away,

I see your smile,

I hear your laughter,

I still sense your tears when I’ve been bad,

That’s not so bad,

It always told me you loved me,

Because you rarely ever cried,

No, you took me in hand,

By listening,

I remember the days you told me to skip school,

Because you wanted to spend some time with me,

Only me,

We sat at the kitchen table,

We talked,

We chatted (there is a difference),

We laughed out loud,

I was your poet, and actor,

You went to every one of my plays,

You took me into the city to see Second City Theater,

We went downtown to see the movies,

Peter O’Toole, Katherine Hepburn, Jason Robards,

You were discerning,

You loved art,

You taught me the love of art,

We had different politics,

We would scream at each other,

(We had a loud family),

But, we loved each other,

I love you, Mom,

Heaven not so far away,

You’re smiling now,

You probably see my tears,

I love you, Mom!

Peter Lowell Paulson

March 11, 2017

Dedicated to Vina Violet (nee Penn) Paulson who would have been 90 years old today