Our Lady of God’s Garden
Rita A. Simmonds
I walked with my Mother in the garden.
I never lost her hand,
not out of fear
but love
that is need to adhere
I grew with my mother
like a garden-
turned rich earth,
flourished like fern.
Delight brushed past.
Only once and enough
I loosed my fleshy grasp
to heed a branching tongue
twining up a tree.
The creature leaned in fast
and breathed on me.
“Take the choicest drupe and eat!”
I snapped the stem and seized the fruit.
It splattered red and stained my palm
but gave no food.
My mother gasped and held her heart.
The creature fell around her feet.
She cracked its neck between her toes.
(Without that slip, my mother’s might and sway I’d never know).
She cloaked me like the earth
swaddling a seed.
I’ll never lose her hand-
Yes, out of fear
and a greater love,
that is greater need to adhere.
Whenever I’m in a parking lot with my daughter and she grabs my hand so I can guide her off the road, I make it a point to exclaim, “I love holding your hand!” Her face always lights up as she cheerfully responds, “You love holding my hand?!” I think that it’s because of this habit that she now reaches for my hand before I even have the chance to ask for it. She knows that, while I’m trying to keep her safe by holding her hand, it’s also a form of love.
This poem felt appropriate for the month of May: a month for mothers, flowers, and most importantly, Mother Mary. There’s so much to unpack in this poem, but this is the heart of it: her hand is the steadiest one to hold. I was reflecting on how I can feel like she’s holding my hand, and then it hit me: the rosary. I’m not good at all about praying it daily, but every time I pick up a rosary it’s like I’m reaching out to hold Mary’s hand once more. And each time she grasps it with her perfect smile. She asks to walk with us, so let’s challenge ourselves to do that this month.
What line resonated with you in this poem? I for one find comfort in being cloaked like the earth and swaddled like a seed. It gives me a certain coziness amidst chaos and exhaustion.
Of Wood and Word Happenings
I’ve enjoyed working on this newsletter for you all, and I’m continuously thinking of what content best serves you. With that, I have a question for you:
Please note: I’ll still be sending reflections on poems as well as interviews with other Catholic writers. These reviews would simply be bonus content.
As always, you can find more of my work at ofwoodandword.com
I hope everyone has a great start to their week!
Through Christ,
Steph Petters
She cloaked me like the earth is also my favorite line because it reminds me of how our Blessed Mother covers us with her mantle when we ask her to.
So many great lines to pick from! This one in particular stood out to me: “She cracked its neck between her toes”
Wow! Our Mother’s might and sway is great!
Thank you Our Mother of Mercy!