A Mother’s Day Letter, wiritten for the students of Pine Forge Academy, most of whom are far from home

Dear Mama,

I write this letter on invisible paper,
For these are only thoughts, that I cannot express in words
And on this, your special day, I send it to you over the miles between us
and through the span of time that has separated us

You are the candle that has lit my world, in bright and smiling beams
casting a radiance of beauty that glistens from the eye of motherhood,
Though you are now so distant from my eyes

You are a lighted candle, with cooling drips of wax that form
Upon your stately taper
spilling out your name,
in tears of longing that quickly stain
the inkless words upon this humble piece of paper

And now my waxen phrases on a page of imagination
seem insufficient to express my love for you, the Mama that I left behind.
For I cannot write through homesick eyes

Sometimes I feel alone and abandoned, in a strange world
That is so different from my home

Sometimes I feel out of place, surrounded by these sloping hills
Too distant from my Mama’s face
But I know she is there, awaiting my return

And so the candle burns and burns, melting in oozing honey drops
Down this sheet of yearning
Bathing it in memories of childhood years
Of butterflies and carousels and motherly embraces
Binding us in a ribbon of kinship,
that through our heart still laces

The earthresumes its course across the sky,
But I, among the young and melancholy
cannot let sad words stay fixed
upon a page that was meant to contain my love
and not these tears of longing to be with you

But only a mother’s tender words could reverse
My own despair, in the simplicity of verse

Take then, this pen, dear Mama, and write of all the joy
Bestowed the world within a moments span of life that you have lived
And there within your poetic beauty we will see the gifts you have given
In freshness of each day you live
As though you were just newly born
savoring every moment as though
It were the very first and very last
In your songs of laughter, still vibrantly singing in my heart
In your deeds and acts of open honesty and grace
That are written in the lines upon your face

Even though you are far away
the season’s breezes are whispering
The joyful melodies of you

Even in these silent hills
the delicate petal scent
Of pleasure flows
And sighs a fragrance that I breathe
And I can feel the gentle softness of your hand
Upon my arm, and I can hear your voice of love
Whispering in my ear,

I look into the starry night, And there you are
A bright and flickering star
a single flame that shines
And smiles at me
The light upon a candle wick
dancing in maternal grace, and I can feel
Your light, your warmth, your courage, your strength
Your laughter your faith, your trust
and your love, in radiance on my face

Let the stars be your ink
And all mankind will read your poetry
In new formed constellations, so that all
The world will know how much I am blessed
By having you as my Mama.

You are the flame that lights my life.
You are the force that drives my ambitions
You are the strength that moves me forward
You are the one who comforts me
You are my inspiration-
You are my Mama
And I love you
with all my heart

Elizabeth Santos