Legacy
Once there were two women
Who never knew each other,
One you do not remember
The other you call Mother.
Two different lives, shaped to make your one.
One became your guiding star
The other became your sun.
The first gave you life
The other taught you how to live in it.
The other taught you how to live in it.
The first gave you a need for love
And the second was there to give it.
One gave you a nationality
The other gave you a name.
One gave you the seed of talent
The other gave you an aim.
One gave you emotions
The other calmed your fear.
One saw your first sweet smile
The other dried your tears.
One gave you up - all that she could do.
The other prayed for a child, and
God blessed her with you.
And now you ask me, through your tears,
The age old question, unanswered through the years
Heredity or environment - which are you a product of?
Both, my darling, both
They're just different kinds of love.
There was another version that floated about with the ending changed to "Neither. my darling, neither" which never made any sense whatsoever to me.
So, I ask you now... is it still true today? Or, do you think it needs an update?
What changes would you make to it?
This is a first draft of my personal rewrite. What's YOUR Legacy?:
I am Your Legacy
Once their were two women
Who barely knew each other,
One became your Mom
The other, still your Mother.
The first gave you life
The other took you for her own.
The first one's love was used against her
Forced to sacrifice so you wouldn't live in strife
One gave you a nationality
The other changed your name.
Both are always proud of you
Though you sometimes feel ashamed.
One was there to wipe your tears
The other suffered through the years.
One gave you up - told it was best for you
The other prayed for a child, and
Was able to pay for you.
And now you ask me, through your tears,
The age old question, unanswered through the years
Heredity or environment - which are you a product of?
Both, my darling, both...
Nature made you who are and that's your legacy
Nature made you who are and that's your legacy
If nurtured well, you'll be able to embrace
All who contributed to your life and heredity
Without any tugs of loyalty
All who contributed to your life and heredity
Without any tugs of loyalty
But laws unfairly took your name
And turned it into shame
They're not protecting me or youJust tearing us in two.
2 comments:
WOW! That is so much more accurate than the original, and tugs at the heart so much more. Very powerful.
Her you go; wrote this a while ago. I never liked that "poem".
Lousy Legacy
Once there were two women
Who could not stand each other
They fought and scratched like alley cats
Over who was really "mother"
One said "I gave you brown eyes"(sorry that they're crossed)
The other said "I wiped your butt, picked up the junk you lost"
"I labored hours when you were born, and oy, the pain, it hurt!
The other said, "I washed your socks that reeked of sweat and dirt"
"You're MINE" both shrieked, You owe me! I am the One True Mother."
"You damned ungrateful adoptee, come here and let me smother...."
Do you come from your A.mom's heart, or from your B.Mom's guts?
Neither, darling, neither
'Cause both of them are nuts!
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