Your first lesson on how to be a woman was learned at your mother’s knee.
The lesson itself – a woman is a home built by layers upon layers of silence,
And a woman should know when to bite her tongue, even if it bleeds
You were very young – you did not realize the weight of this teaching.
Years pass and you bear witness to the loudness of a woman’s silence
The many ways that casual acceptance eats away at your mother
Without her noticing, it becomes a burden shared between her two daughters.
You do not begrudge her for failing to notice how her silences and tearless cries imprisoned you
You understand better than most that she did the best she could at every single turn
You realize that in her position, you could not have done anything differently.
You are still fluent in the language of silence, but you dress it up in subtle rebellion
You are your mother’s daughter, and you still walk in her shadow

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

Photo by Mohamed Nohassi on Unsplash