In the City of Downey, where I was born,
my mom gave me options, and I was torn.
She said, "Here are your choices. Listen kid -
we can go to Giza to see the great pyramid,
or maybe you want to see the Great Wall,
or the Sistine Chapel or the Taj Mahal -
but wait, look out the window. It's getting dark.
We just have time for Rio San Gabriel Park.
There's a lion drinking fountain where you can drink.
How about that son? What do you think?"
So, we got in the car, drove two minutes to see
The Big Yellow Lion Fountain of RSG.
I'll tell you friends, that's as good as it gets,
and to this day, I've had no regrets.
Invisible to others,
But visible to you,
Oh, Mother,
In the light but hidden from view,
Yet seen by you,
Oh, Mother,
I cried,
I don’t want the world to see me as I am,
I don’t want the world to see me in my messy puddle,
I don’t want the world to see this lesser part of me.
Oh, Mother, embrace me,
Oh, Mother, tell me again those words that guide me through a turbulent sea.
Oh, Mother, my heart bleeds, and my mind plummets into the darkest night.
There’s a deep silence.
My mother smiles and holds my hand,
As tears stream down my face.
August 18, 2026.
I wish the face in the mirror wasn’t mine.
The body I am forced to live in,
If only it could display the way I feel inside.
The body that others see,
Isn’t truly who I am.
I am not the unconfident “girl” they think they see.
No matter who decides to ignore my name,
Ignore the person I have proved myself to be.
I know who I am regardless of their words.
Every smile from a friend reminds me,
I am myself no matter who doesn’t believe me.
There is no need for proof here.
Nothing will change who I am unless I choose.
I am just as much of a man as anyone.
Even if you won’t listen.
I am still me.
If we acknowledge Mother Earth,
How is it we discount her daughters?
If might doesn't make right,
What have we left out of the world?
What do we make of this world… that was made for us?
If we look up to Father Sky,
Is that why we look down on Mother Earth?
Or have we put words in the mouth of the wind,
When we mouth the words of our fathers?
Have we not learned from whence they came?
Upliftments with You at Heart and in Mind
Hopes satisfied
Dreams awakened
I wish you all the best today
and always
Sacred peace
Clarity of mind
Sound discernment
Wisdom beyond your years
in such times
Avenues to excel in
Delights of worthy sort
Fulfillment in life
and a secure
and confident heart
Genuine friends to share your journey
the capacity to forgive
and willingness to live and let live
Guidance when needed
Answered prayers
with every God ordained provision,
love allowed fruition
May you be endowed and
enriched plentifully abounding
in each fruit of the Spirit
• love
• joy
• peace
• patience
• kindness
• goodness
• faithfulness
• gentleness
• self-control
Patience and protection
and the will to stand back up be
that in any time you so happen
experience a fall in life
An ear to recognize times
for shifts or new directions
Strength and a path led in wholesome pleasantries
Goodness and mercy following thee
all the days of your life. Blessings
________________________________________________________
Thoughtfully dedicated to my loving son...
Today is your birthday
And I’m proud of you
Heart of gold you make
Joyful dreams a truth
Man of courage compassion
I love you very much son
Chocolate man of passion
A special intelligent one
Happy God blessed me so
Jones is your given name
Onyx hair and brilliant goals
Never change a single thing
Every prayer was like a dare
Saw God bless you to dream
Every mother's prayer calls home
in this hut
morning smoke billows upwards
holes in the door and roof gasp
a mother's tear-streaked face
over the burning coals
empty clay pot
who will provide enough food
today?
Ahead, the wet dust on the paths
it's hard to tell whether it was last night's rain
or a drop of blood
but the remnants of water on the road
and the remnants of light in the vision
seep into the womb
becoming pus and blood.
Children fall asleep listening to stories
now they rub their eyes
to ponder
that there is no more fairyland
no wind
to carry them away
and if they try to stand
their heads hit the black sky
their eyes burn
their hands burn
their stomachs burn
are they roasting themselves?
A voice rises up
is it from the sea?
from the valley?
from the mountains?
from the storm?
from the wailing of many voices?
it continued to soar into the sky,
but in the trees,
the branches
and leaves remained motionless.
Smoke swirled like any other day,
only the mother slowly lifted her face,
tears streaming for a moment,
and the children peeked out again
—and again.
Atambua—Indonesia, July 9, 2026
1//
In that furnace, sacred embers write hymns on the ashes, while the twilight body wears the weaving of ancestors who have become wind;
Mother stirs silence like mud, giving birth to a piece of sago for the sky from the tears of the sago palm that never stops praying.
2//
Mother's ancient pot is the cup of eternity, ready to catch the rain that drips from God's palm to the lips of the aging earth;
Its smoke rises like incense, carrying the names of my ancestors like white birds returning to the altar of light.
3//
When night covers the shoulders of the earth with a mantle of eternal shadow, that furnace continues to breathe as the heart of a home that knows no eternity;
Oh mother, in your silence, older than time, you sincerely sew love on embers until dawn is born as a child of prayer.
Atambua—Indonesia, July 10, 2026
The rooms are quiet, the hallway still,
A heavy silence on the sill.
The shoes that cluttered up the floor
Are gone beyond the front-end door.
The nest is empty, wide, and bare,
But memories linger everywhere.
My heart is caught in bittersweet,
Where pride and longing softly meet.
I watch you step into the light,
And spread your wings for steady flight.
You’ve reached the goals you set to find,
With brilliant strength and gentle mind.
I hold my breath, so proud to see
The incredible soul you grew to be.
Yet in the quiet of the night,
I miss the laugh that made things bright.
A mother’s love is bound and tied
To every step you take outside,
A fierce, unchanging, endless bond,
That stretches out and far beyond.
Go chase the stars, go claim your day,
I’ll love you from a house away.
And though the emptiness is deep,
It’s promises of you I keep.
No greater love than a mother’s
for her children
‘til the world saw a father’s for his son
total amazing!
very beautiful blessings!
a mother tender.
She doesn't remember her son.
She lives somewhere in the distant past.
She's happy, that's what counts.
AP: 2nd place 2026
not until November his mama said
squirrel got angry and his cheeks got red
when is that? he wanted to know
it will probably snow, she said, probably snow
the next day was November first
but his mother could be kind of the worst
she did not tell him, because she was not in the pie-baking mood
that is what he was after, his favorite food
Driving on a two-lane road,
my mind focused and easy,
no worries, no mental load,
I felt good, free and breezy.
Chatting with my backseat child,
enjoying together time,
our moods were playful styled.
All things were surely fine.
A sports car came way too close,
then it slowed, but it did not pass.
Just then, my son’s question rose,
“Why is that man doing that?”
“Son, it’s how traffic news is signaled
when drivers' voices cannot be heard.
Middle fingers mimic the crass tones
of a vile species called 'Greeting Birds."
To our son Kartikeya
Another birthday crowns, dear son, though far you stay,
With love beside you now in life’s new way,
We celebrate you here with smiling tears,
And send our prayers across the seas today.
The house still echoes with your laughter bright,
Your memories linger softly every night,
Though distance keeps your cherished face afar,
Our hearts embrace you closely in their light.
Now married, may your journey bloom with grace,
With endless joy and peace your home embrace,
May every step together shine with love,
And happiness forever fill your space.
So on this day, our blessings gently soar,
Across the oceans to Canary Wharf’s distant shore,
Know that son, you are our greatest joy,
Loved deeply now and always evermore.
May 30,2026
© Dr Upma A. Sharma
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Definition | What is Mother Son in Poetry?
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