Since primordial times, people have expressed their deepest emotions, created healing, and stimulated personal growth through poetry. The well known scholar and psychiatrist, Sigmund Freud, once stated: 'Not I, but the poet discovered the unconscious.' Poetry has a way of taking you too many places...places, sometimes, only our mind can create. When we travel to that creative place our poems come from...it is then that healing, peace, and insights are generated.
Growing up, I was never a poetry writer, but loved reading all genres of it. It wasn't until the most strenuous time of my life, that I stumbled upon the healing power of poetry! The exact moment will always be fresh in my mind: My son, Maurice, had been in the Intensive Care Unit for over a month. We were now waiting for any signs that he would start coming out of the coma. I was physically and mentally exhausted. I knew he was depending on me to stay strong for him, and even though he couldn't speak, he could hear and feel what was going on around him. I took Maurice's hand and recounted trips we had been on. I talked for hours, just hoping something I said might wake him up quicker. I went over memories we shared at the beach, as this was his favorite place to go. I recalled one trip where Maurice and I had taken a picture inside a huge diorama of a shark's mouth. "I can't wait for us to go to the beach again, sweetie. "Remember when we took the picture inside of the shark's mouth?" I asked, looking down at him. He, of course, didn't respond. I closed my eyes, trying to fight back the tears. "I know you can hear me, babe," I asserted. "Mommy's going to be right here when you wake up." I shifted in my chair, pulling a blanket I had on my lap up over my shoulders. When suddenly, I thought I felt a finger move! Knowing I hadn't slept well in over a month, I thought I was mistaken. Trying to decompress, I kept talking about the beach trip. Then I felt his fingers moving again. This time, even slightly more than the first. I couldn't have been misconstrued. I jumped up and pressed the nurse call button so much I thought I might break it. The whole time I kept saying to Maurice, "I'm here baby...I knew you could do it!" It felt as if we had been waiting a lifetime for Maurice to start waking up. I knew we were still in a battle, but all that mattered was my baby was fighting through it!
Many reflections were running rampant through my mind. It felt as if I was going to rupture inside. I wanted to express my everlasting love for him in a special way. Contemplating all the agony we had encountered throughout the ICU, I reached for a pen and paper and started writing him this poem:
My Hero
As I drive down this broken road
I can't help but wonder what life will unfold.
Looking out at the midnight sky
my mind starts to drift, thinking of you and I.
Every corner I turn and every stoplight I see
are filled with our sweet memories.
Wondering how one minute you can have it all
and never knowing that in the blink of an eye
it could all be gone.
As another day passes and another night ends
I try to convince myself, I'm just trapped in a nightmare that will soon end.
If I had a wish, I would turn back the hands of time
and erase all of your pain you feel inside.
I would shield and protect you from any harm
and never let you go from my arms.
You are truly an angel and everything to me
and I can't ever explain how you've always
made me so proud
from the first day I took you into your pre-k class
I will never forget, the way you sat down so brave
and so eager to learn.
You looked at me and smiled and waved good-bye.
You were never scared and had a certain look in your eye.
I knew you would grow up to be a great man
and you've exceeded my expectations time and time again.
I wonder if I'll ever hear you talk to me again
to tell me that you love me and just how your day has been.
Sometimes, I see you look at me, so deeply in my eyes
and I wish I knew what you were thinking and feeling inside.
I know you have an angel with you everywhere you go,
and God has a plan for you that we soon will know.
You have been through a battle and still are fighting now
strong and fearless as a brave soldier, traveling onto enemy ground.
Your motivation for fighting so hard through all of this
I wish I knew.
Anyone else would have given up and never made it through.
You have a will to live, that is amazing and always shines through.
You will always be my hero, a true inspiration to me.
I hope you know how much I truly love you,
and I will never leave your side.
I am truly blessed to have you, I know without
a doubt.
I will never take a day for granted, for you
are what life and love are truly about!
I had found a way to release my inner emotions! It was like a weight had been lifted off my shoulders and transferred, at least momentarily, through the pen to the paper. Poetry had allowed me to escape from all of the doubt, worry, and perplexing feelings which were plaguing my heart.
I would love to hear any of your own inspirational poetry! Thank you for reading this blog post and I will close with this short poem from Michael Sage:
An Emotion
There came an emotion, somewhere from above
Gracefully floating, like a beautiful white dove.
I'm enveloped by emotion, it fits like a glove
So peaceful and wonderful, this feeling called Love.
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