Love's Parameters
I watched a young mother slapping her child
Unmercifully in his face today
And wanted to return the favor
Equally, in a like-wise manner.
I’ve no earthly idea what the child must have done
To find himself the recipient of this unnecessary abuse
And was enraged at his predicament
While watching helplessly.
I contrasted this picture
With other scenes I’ve witnessed
Whereby other mothers permit their children
The most unruly and inappropriate behavior imaginable.
The difference between extremes of abusive behavior
And an appropriate amount of gentle, loving persuasion
Which every child needs and craves
Is a matter of degree.
In all life’s fecundities a balance must be sought,
Attempted to be achieved
To create the ideal coalescence
In the universe that leads
To peace, harmony and equanimity.
Parents need not be maltreating
Their children as if lesser human beings
Nor allowing them unmitigated freedom
Void of boundaries or limitations.
Life is all about learning
How far we can go
And the wise teacher is one
Who teaches we are all arrows
In potential or released
From the confines of a bow…
Human limits
Are meant to be stretched, expanded
While love provides the parameters
Between feeling comfortably at home
And lost or stranded.
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