A Mom's Goodbye

Today is Day 25 of National Poetry Month.

A Mom's Goodbye

By Candace Shultz

A son left home to go to college,

Waving to his mom goodbye.

Saddened, she let him go,

Knowing that he needed to fly,

And as she watched him drive away

She willed herself not to cry.

Then she walked into her home

And waited by the door,

Hoping that he forgot a book,

A picture, clothes from his drawer.

But she knew that he wouldn't be back,

So she let herself sink to the floor.

Yet, as she looked out the door

To her freshly mowed front yard,

She knew that her son would be okay

And that goodbyes were always hard.

So she stood up and closed the door,

Sending a silent prayer to the Lord.

Then she looked up at her wall

And saw a picture of her son.

She touched his face, then continued down the hall,

Stopping to gaze at each picture, one by one,

Watching as her baby grew up to be a man,

Realizing a new chapter in both their lives had begun.