We never learned to weep,
the daughters.
It was up to the mothers
to create a space
where, as babies, we could
let out our frustration,
where, as children, we
could test boundaries
and cry at our own failure,
where, as teenagers, we
could love, be lost,
and cry at our own wanderings.
If we did not see our mothers cry
it would be alien to us.
If we saw them cry too much,
a threat.
Mothers would throw their hands
up in the air; any which way
it seemed like they lost.
I taught myself to weep;
I believe the knowledge was born into me.
My mother listened to my sobs
from behind my closed door for years.
This is when tears bring on the fear of continuation.
And mothers wonder if crying
should be taught at all
just to save their daughters
from such pain.

04/04/2006

Posted on 04/04/2006
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