A recent visit from my family has reminded me of a truth. Most children end up marrying a version of their primary caregiver. Below is a poem I wrote reflecting this fact, as well as a blog post from May 14, 2023.
<My Spoon Full of Sugar>
I married Mary Poppins.
It is true.
No surprise for Mary is my mother too.
They sing in the morning and like things tidy and clean.
No time for nonsense or excuses,
only good behavior will do.
They are stern, responsible and sensible…
a little vain and irritable too.
They never explain anything but are
diligent caretakers
paying
their
due.
Yet he is my spoonful of sugar
helping the medicine of life
go down.
He loves with delicately balanced
quesadillas and grilled cheese.
She loved with neatly cut and arrayed platters of fruits and veggies.
He is “practically perfect in every way,”
or so they say.
Attractive, enthusiastic, and well dressed,
busy but playful.
They cook and clean,
work and glean,
garden and farm.
Effective in a magical sense.
But
best of all…
He loves in the most delightful way.
Mom has always been very talkative, fun-loving, and a cheerleader of all. Mom is musical and emulates both Maria Von Trapp and Mary Poppins. Morning consisted of Mom singing while she opened the blinds and encouraged, through song and light, to "rise and shine" and start the day full of energy and purpose. Mom could also be found jumping on the trampoline in our back yard encouraging us to bounce away the worries of the day.
Make no mistake Mom has a temper. When I was a child, I compared her to a can of Coke. Sweet and refreshing, often found at parties, but explosive if shaken.
The ideal pupil has always excelled in academia, sometimes to a fault; she can be too literal to understand an obvious concept. As her student, you must listen to her full lesson before asking well thought out and articulate questions. Summers and holidays were especially enjoyable because as a teacher Mom's alter ego of a 1950s house wife could emerge. She loved to fill silver platters full of cut up fruits, meats, and cheeses for her children, nieces, nephews, and neighborhood kids to enjoy in between intense play times. Apart from summers and holidays my favorite childhood memories are of Mom reading to my brother and me before bed.
Mom enjoys a plethora of hobbies. She joined a dragon boat rowing team and rowed on the Allegheny River, she took up racquetball, kayaking, sews, knits, crochets and macramés. The less accomplished side of her loves the movie Groundhog Day and really all of Bill Murray's comedy. Mom has a great sense of humor and duty. Mom held her parents and grandparents in very high esteem and could be comforted and guilted by them like only a first born.
She loves culture and learning about new foods and customs. If she can read about it, she can do it. Mom taught me the rare and valuable skill of being able to make something out of nothing. What she does have, she always makes better; be it leftovers, a home, or a yard one can always identify her mark.
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