My Mother Is Near
By John Herlihy

My mother continues to stay near
As a vivid memory held most dear
When I think of her, I shed no tear
My heart feels pierced by a spear
My mother gave me life without fear
When I am in need, I see her appear
She was always there us kids to rear
Now she lives forever, year by year

In my heart she holds a unique place
She is the mother of the human race
A universal presence nothing can efface
No one can ever her wisdom displace
She taught me in stages at my own pace
So that I too could find my own place
A place in the world that I could face
To give of myself to receive her grace

Always endearing when she smiled
Always merciful when we ran wild
With us kids, she never became riled
Like weather she was always mild
As taskmaster, she was self-styled
As my star in infancy, I was beguiled
In her dreams I was always a child
In my dreams I was always a child

She often appears in different stages
She worked hard earning her wages
One day young turning fresh pages
Another day as old as enduring ages
She helped set our fears free from cages
She filled our cups in measured gages
Her patience understood our little rages
She instilled virtue in us in various stages

My mother will always be by my side
Happy when my life surges like a tide
She frowns when life scorches my hide
Her sweet smile can extend a mile wide
She fills me up with her feelings of pride
One day a day came upon us I never espied
My mother laid quietly down and just died
I have fulfilled my promise and never cried.