My Mum

My Mum

My Mum is different from other mums Several years ago she nearly died She knows what it is like.

When you die The worst words you can say are If only ...

If only I had tried harder If only I had learned more If only I had loved more.

My Mum had travelled across the world She has seen people living in palaces and hovels And some with nowhere at all.

My Mum is a nurse She has seen people bleeding, stabbed, beaten, broken. She has seen gang fights in city streets, She has nursed hobos and drug addicts, Abandoned babies and unwanted old people So much loneliness and unhappiness She has seen it all ... In real life.

My Mum does not like the killing on TV She does not like my brothers and me fighting When we watch violence on TV she is upset She says, "Don't bring it into our living room on the TV screen.

My Mum does not want us hardened by what we see on TV She wants us to have a childhood - While there is still some childhood left to have.

My Mum says I am special I am a child of God.

Olive Redmond 1985