How like a stone house
is the love of a mother!
Sturdy and dependable,
giving hope and succor
to all sheltering within
her tender protection,
a bulwark against
the vagaries of either
harsh climate or fate,
her cheery hearth
a well-loved gathering
place, her graciousness
a warm and welcome
embrace of both child
and friend, a space
to meet or mend,
a mountain retreat
in which to grow
mellow with wonder
at her memory ´
first published in Storyteller Magazine
also published in LONE STARS
©2013 Bonnie Manion