Sixty-four, looking ninety,
my mother – stripped naked,
mirrored in a bathroom door.
I recall, how as a child, lips
that had kissed a sore knee well
in seconds, could only spew
profanities, fighting to retain
tattered remains
of a long-discarded dignity.
Helped them lift her
to the bath – she,
who’d been fastidious
to a fault and used to smell
of lavender and Lifebouy;
they, who would have her
reek of disinfectant.
‘Routine procedure’,
they said, for all.
Got some scissors
from her handbag,
tried to trim her hair –
scraped back; wayward
strands bent on escaping
a rubber band, but she
was scared, so I whispered,
“It’s me. Don’t be afraid...”
which in retrospect was stupid.
‘Me’ could have meant the man
in the moon for all she knew
as she grabbed my hand –
stunned me with those childlike,
blue eyes of hers; small
as the ocean, big as alone.
They took her scissors,
her sterling silver compact...
most everything she owned –
locked up; the key thrown away.
Nothing sharp permitted here –
not in this place. Only glass
to break in emergency.
Papers, duly signed by my dad
and her GP. My mother –
sectioned. It was
nineteen-eighty- two,
and Alzheimer’s was
another word for ‘mad’.
Comments
luigi_pagano | October 25, 2009 - 09:51
Hello Tina. I see that you too could not resist the challenge of the Inspiration Point.
Here you have produced a very poignant poem in your own, always excellent, style to highlight a problem which, as you rightly say, would once have been categorised as madness.
I appreciate the way your poetry tells a complex story in a seemingly effortless manner. You are a born raconteur.
Luigi xxx
Silver Spun Sand | October 25, 2009 - 17:05
Dear Luigi, your words mean much and I thank you for them.
Yes, times have changed and the world has moved on.
Fortunately, my mother only survived in that place for two weeks. I was heartbroken, but wherever she is now, it would certainly be heaven compared to Tooting Asylum, demolished in the early nineties.
Tina xxx
MistakenMagic | October 26, 2009 - 18:09
Dear Tina, so sorry I missed this one! This cherry is very richly deserved, it is a heart-breaking poem but one I know we can all benefit from reading. I'm glad you finally put pen to paper for this one, it is a beautiful gem of a poem ;)
Magic xxx
Nathan Bednarek | October 26, 2009 - 18:47
A well deserved cherry. Would've given you a whole bunch of cherries if it were up to me ;-)
A wonderful read. Thank you for posing this.
Nathan xox
Silver Spun Sand | October 26, 2009 - 18:51
Thank you so very much, Magic.
As usual your empathy and understanding come through so much in your comments,not only to me, but to so many others on ABC...which must have something to do with your wonderful gift for poetry;-)
Have a peaceful evening and a good week.
Tina xxx
Silver Spun Sand | October 26, 2009 - 18:56
Nathan...thank you. You just slipped quietly in there whilst I was replying to Magic.
I much appreciate your words, and I was 'saying' to Magic earlier this evening, it is a poem I have been trying to write for years and having finally done it, I intend, some day, to write a much fuller account of my mother's traumatic experiences, nearly thirty years ago now. Times have changed, thank goodness, even though it was too late for her.
Thanks again and I hope you too have a good and fruitful week.
Tina xox
SundaysChild | October 27, 2009 - 23:19
A heart wrenching poem- you have such talent I am lost for words.
Silver Spun Sand | October 28, 2009 - 00:34
Thank you for reading, and caring.
Tina
Lucifer | October 30, 2009 - 01:02
Powerful words,especially last two verses-thanks for sharing.
Silver Spun Sand | October 30, 2009 - 09:00
Thank you very much for reading, Lucifer. And welcome to ABC.
Tina;-)