The Inscription inside the Statue of Motherhood

The Colossal Mom*

Not like the cover model of Vogue or Elle,

With skinny limbs draped with designer clothes,

Here, in the ankle-high filth shall stand

A tired woman with a diaper bag, the murky depths

Of which no one wants to plumb, and her name

Mother. Just Mother. From her dishpan hand

Flow everlasting snacks; her wild eyes command

The cramped dwelling that children and husband inhabit.

"Keep, orderly homes, your fabled peace!" cries she

With chapped lips. "Give me your tired, your cranky,

Your frantic toddlers longing to scale walls,

The pitiful savages I call my children.

Send these, the crazy, reason-impaired to me,

I open my arms beside the pile of dirty laundry!"

*All rights reserved. May only be copied with the author's (my) permission.