A Pure Rosebud Living on the Mountainside
A birthday poem I made as a gift for my mother ❤
Children are like earthen sculptures in a mother’s hands
You mold them, carve out their details and chip away the needless
And no one knows the art as well as the sculptor herself
That is what you always told me, Mama
Now I believe in my free will and choices
But I know so much of who I am today
Was first envisioned and shaped by you
When I look closely at my smallest habits
And the mindsets I use to interpret the world
I always find a small trace of you in me
Of the devoted sculptor who took the time
To mold me with beauty of the soul
Your painstaking attention to every detail
Has shaped the contours of my heart and mind
I can count so many virtues
That you directly sowed into my persona
You were the firefly who illuminated my path
To show me the world of storybooks
Their imagination and wondrous creativity
Always mesmerised us both
You would stay up at night telling me stories
Until one day I started to tell stories too
Becoming a writer for life
You were my first sincere reader
And you still remain so
Although I am growing up
And you’re growing older
You are as particular as ever about me
If I drink enough water, eat well and keep myself in order
You are the one who calls my phone most often
And panic incessantly if you don’t happen to know
Where I am at every moment
Even if it makes me exasperated sometimes
I realise that you are the only person
Who would go through all this trouble for me
You set me an example by helping people
From every imaginable walk of life
With the same dignity and grace
No matter where they came from
With a warm homely gesture
You always managed to brighten their day
And you taught me how to do small things
To honor the ones we love
To know the power of sincere compliments
To make my father cups of tea
To water flowering plants
To thank the earth we walk upon
To sprinkle rice grains for the visiting sparrows
And ask a tree for forgiveness if we pluck its leaves
You taught me how to speak with sweetness
With genuine respect and intelligence
You showed me how to be well mannered
If people see grace in me
They see the fruits of your tireless teaching
You are pure of heart and innocent as a child
You always tell me
That the real jewel of beauty
Does not lie in outward appearance
It exists within a person’s education
Within their heart and mind
But most of all
Within the purity of their soul
Even so, I always tell you
That you are as beautiful
As a pure rosebud living on the mountainside
With a spiritual glow in your face
A northern fairness and an aquiline nose
That twinkle in your eyes and apple shaded cheeks
Your big warm face
Always cradled with heavy falls of dark hair locks
You have always appeared to me
Like a children’s storybook angel
I can never express the profound resonance
Of your influence on my life
I don’t know the persona I would have been without you
A little girl who would certainly miss a divine blessing
From the moment I opened my eyes
I was born as a frail newborn on the verge of leaving life
And your faith and diligence brought me to a place
That made me heal and blossom
To actually stand tall enough to look down upon your face
Peering at you from my newfound height
To find you adorable and endearing at all times
Each day you continue to hum on with chatter
Serenading me with unending spiritual speeches
As I sigh with ancient exasperation
And do what I always do
I lean down to embrace you tight
And kiss your forehead to make you smile
A storybook angel that the universe gifted me
My pure rosebud living on the mountainside
You are deeply loved by your daughter
You are forever special to me
