MOTHERLESS

Remembering my feelings.
I cried myself to sleep each night.
Why me?
So long ago.
Merely a child.
So much to learn about life.
I had to move on.
Loving family and friends,
Checking up on me.
Decisions came from myself.
I had to decide right from wrong,
And when not to follow the crowd.
I wanted my mother to be proud.
My accomplishments.
Even though she wasn't here.
I want my values to remain the same.
To give my daughter's a positive message.
Situations change, you don't have to fall apart.
Journeys bring us new challenges.
. . . could my mother have saved me?

by Jaymee Chanen,
from Ruby Slippers, Finding Your Way Home from Emotional Abuse.
North Star Press, St. Cloud, MN, 2008.
Reprinted with permission.