Innocence

I remember a day when your fiery presence startled me to tears.
Your harsh-seeming words rang through my ears,
Your resistance to the flow of the world's current.

And the hot blood that flowed through your veins
Urged on by your commanding spirit.

Then your laugh would ring through the silence,
And a smile would brighten your face
And the beats of your heart I counted
When cuddled in your warm, loving embrace.

And when I saw the blood from your wounds spill freely
Drowning the words on your tongue
The power of what you had to say
Finally broke through to my adolescent mind.

We are a cause united
A nation wrought with fear.

But I am one less afraid.

I will hold my head, my beloved
As you fought the world to teach me.
You were killed for who you were
Not a crime had you committed.

And those who took you cared not
for me,
the now motherless child.

In your arms my head rested,
Even after the beats had stopped
So that the pride in your priceless being
Would place its mark on my young heart.

Mother, know that I love you.
Good-bye.