Love Poem: Pride
Cathy Martin Avatar
Written by: Cathy Martin

Pride

I guess we all have it; some, more than others.
Sisters, Brothers, Fathers and Mothers,
We look at each other and look in the mirror,
Hoping one day we will all see much clearer.
 
Pride can be good but can also be bad
When we look at our lives and then flaunt what we’ve had
Maybe we’d better be thankful for things
That will teach us the lessons that life always brings.
 
When I was a child there were times when I felt
That life wasn’t fair with the cards that she dealt.
But I was too young to know then what it meant.
Pride was a sin from which we must repent.
 
Back then, there were times when I felt quite ashamed
Of the people I loved and the people I blamed
For not being perfect or what I’d expected.
They loved me regardless of being disrespected. 
 
I guess you could say that my parents were not
The typical parents most other kids got.
They grew with up nothing and dropped out of school,
Back when kids picked cotton and plowed with a mule.
 
My Daddy left school when in the 6th grade;
Mother; in 2nd, when that choice was made,
For them to stay home; help the family survive.
Their hard work and labor would keep them alive. 
 
At times, in my youth I did not understand
Just what they had been through and all they had planned.
But now that I’m older and hopefully wiser
I know they were trying to be my advisers.
 
They may not have been just what I would have chosen
But now I am wishing that time would’ve frozen.
Because they are gone and I miss them so much;
The love in their eyes and the warmth of their touch.
 
I mourn for the times that I made them feel sad;
Hurt them and said things that made them so mad.
They always forgave me and stayed by my side,
I can still almost feel Mother’s arms as I cried.
 
As time marches on, I now can attest
My Mother and Daddy knew just what was best.
It doesn’t much matter what others may see.
In my eyes, my family was perfect for me.
 
As we all grow older I hope we will learn
The best things in life are the ones that we earn.
If we’re given all things on a big silver platter
Then how will we ever know what really matters?
 
Our parents aren’t perfect, but neither are we.
We love them and leave them, but don’t really see
How much of ourselves we are leaving behind
As we go on our way, ever hoping to find
 
The truth of our lives as we travel this road.
The detours and roadblocks the Lord has bestowed,
Were put there to teach us what’s right and what’s wrong.
I know now that I was just where I belonged.