Love: A Sestina

I started this sestina in 2006.  It is a rare piece of unfinished writing in that it has nagged at me every now and then;  I decided it was time to finish it.  
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He has the bluest, most soul-filled eyes

taking in the universe as only he, a child,

can do.  Watching him overfills my heart with joy,

yet the worry, pushes in.  After all, I am his mother.

There are not enough words to express love.

Eskimos have over 200 words for “snow,” yet

I come up short:  I adore; I am smitten; I am besotted; yet

still this does not explain the tears in my eyes

every time I look at him and am overcome with:  love.

Gratitude.  Awe, thanksgiving:  for what we have created:  child.

New life, new person, a promise to the world, my own new name:  mother.

I knew great happiness in my life, but this role fills me with unparalleled joy.

Losing a baby was heartbreaking; conceiving another, eventual joy.

When this next one is born I’ll never be able to imagine life without him, yet

I will always wonder who that September babe was.  I am her mother.

Weeks have gone by and years will pass but still tears fill my eyes

When I remember the time when I was Without Child.

No matter – this tiny, lost stranger will always have my love.

Secretly I wonder about the capacity to love,

the ability, that is – infinite, boundless, unconditional; a synonym, perhaps, of joy.

First I learned to love my parents, my brother.  Then husband, firstborn child.

More babies have laid claim to my heart, yet

The muscle stretches to accommodate each, as I look at them through eyes

that are watchful, that are tender, that shine and reflect my love as their mother.

Who was she, the first, the original Mother?

Stretching back thousands of years – the first to experience maternal love.

Look deep and see the pride, hope, adoration in her eyes.

The accomplishments of each generation must fill her with joy;

too, she sees disappointments, devastations, sorrows, yet

over and over she offers her comfort and her grace, her unconditional love for her child.

When my days eventually come to an end, child,

Know this:  I am so proud.  I am proud, honored, grateful to be your Mother.

I am a wife, a sister, a daughter, a teacher, a friend, and yet –

You - and you, and you, child - are my greatest accomplishment, my love.

Filling up every inch of our home with your noise, your toys, and your selves is my joy.

Each day you offer me an invitation to see life again, a new perspective, through your eyes. 

Yet you must know then, it is this Love,

for you, Child: from me, Mother

that creates the neverending Joy in my heart and love shining in my Eyes.