Appreciation

Painful when a friend
Is hurt by her own child.
Teenagers are not easy
To tolerate as they burst
Into anger and swear
With words that wound,
If you want appreciation
You’d better get a dog.
A 14 or 15-year-old is a
Rollercoaster of emotion
Who lashes out at his
Mother in frustration and
Guilt over a divorce and
A new substitute mother
With whom he lives,
The agony of loyalties
Ripped asunder are shown
By that unique churlishness
Of teen angst and fury
Directed at a mother
Sick with MS and daily cares.
A mother’s love must be
Infinite to bear such abuse,
In ten or fifteen years the
Son will grow up enough to
Realize the hurt and damage
He has caused his mother and
She will forgive him as
Only a mother can do:
“Oh sharper than a serpent’s
Tooth is an ungrateful child.”