‘Your Mother’
by Aarti Sisodiya

Your mother lived with a kitchen apron
 Every stain resembled a growing pain
 She tightened her hair into a doughnut bun
 Her uncreased dress hid the shadow of emptiness under her eyes
 She never left the house, slaving away in the kitchen
 Clean and cook and wash and dust
 She only thought what she was expected to
 Only dreamed what was within her limit
 Only learnt what she needed to
 Your mother couldn’t achieve what your father could

 A woman
 A woman with an eye for change
 Under all the grief, there was no self-pity
 Determination and courage clutched tightly in her hands
 You didn’t understand this, lying to yourself
 in a misbelieving world of joy
 until
 your mother firmly told you
 your place in this world is at home 

But
 what about the first woman to uncover the mysteries of the moon
 or venture into unknown lands
 or stand up for her beliefs
 or fight for human rights 
 or become renowned
 a woman is a powerful mind
 of vast knowledge, with a vision too broad for others to possibly
 begin to comprehend

your mother sees that now
 her success no easy feat
 now she has that apron neatly tucked away
 to remind her of the battle she won