“In a child's eyes, a mother is a goddess. She can be glorious or terrible, benevolent or filled with wrath,
but she commands love either way. I am convinced that this is the greatest power in the universe.”
― N.K. Jemisin

Nostalgia and fantasy
Would have us believe
All mothers should be
A June Cleaver,
A Shirley Partridge,
Or an
Olivia Walton,
But mothers are human
With blessings and quirks,
Demons and shortcomings.
They have their bright sides
And their dark sides,
Some love a bit,
Some can love a lot,
Most worry and fret
Over their chicks,
While a few remain blasé
About the comings and goings
Of their progeny.
My mother
Was all of the above,
A complex woman
Who managed to
Raise four kids
While our father deployed
To unknown places
Around the world.
She kept our home fires burning
As best she could
With the limited means
Provided to
Military families.
She didn't always
Get it right,
But she always tried
To do right.
She was an amazing woman
To have shouldered so much
With so much going on
Within her.

~In Memory of~
Shirley Ann Frye Russell
June 7, 1943-August 7, 2007

c. 2024