I miss my mother greatly but she left behind some wonderful memories. 

A Simple Life

Saturday night adventures, hot dogs from Burger Carte,

Going to watch Chief Black Eagle wrestle in Oak Hill,

My mother, fists in the air, cheering on her favorite wrestler,

People slurping drinks, crunching popcorn, mesmerized,

Unaware of the traffic, or the passing of time, lost in the moment.

The Grand Ole Opry; Faron Young, George Jones, and Porter Waggoner,

Who done who wrong songs playing on a jukebox, lights flashing,

Local bars, bare and dark, filled with coal miners and dreamers,

Plain people enjoying simple pleasures, being whoever they were,

Walt Disney World with the family on Sunday evening.

Day after day, watching him put on his heavy boots,

Kissing him at the door, sending him off with a lunch bucket,

Deep into the belly of the earth to mine black diamonds,

Watching him until he was completely out of sight,

Then crawling into bed to pray for his safe return.

Then came the waiting rooms, patients in every chair,

Symptoms creeping in along with the wrinkles lining her face,

The doctor spoke of cancer, offered encouragement and pills,

She became the wrestler, fighting off cells, refusing to give up,

Smiling, demanding a hot dog, fists in the air, living until the last breath.

© Dianna Doles Petry