in bloom

     Motherhood isn't creation
I didn't choose your nose, hair, or
     wild disposition
I didn't select what would make you cry
     or the colors you'd be drawn to
I didn't put the sparkle in
     your eyes, or the bells in your laugh
I may have mixed the ingredients
     but I didn't write the recipe.
No, motherhood is not creation
It's the tending of a garden
     knees in the rocky mud
     sweat dripping into eyes under the
     hot but life-giving sun
     a sprinkling of water
     the endless picking of weeds
     guarding against hungry beasts
     joy as the first sprouts appear.
There is no creation in motherhood,
     no ownership
     only stewardship
     and a quiet but profound faith
     that if cared for
     the child will bloom.
   
                                   --Bunmi Laditan