These days Lifting myself up Like a heavy weight, Old camel getting to her knees, I think of my mother And the inexhaustible flame That kept her alive Until she died.
She knew all about fatigue And how one pushes it aside For staking up the lilies Early in the morning, The way one pushes it aside For a friend in need, For a hungry cat.
Mother, be with me. Today on your birthday I am older than you were When you died Thirty-five years ago. Thinking of you The old camel gets to her knees, Stands up, Moves forward slowly Into the new day.
If you taught me one thing It was never to fail life.
