Mama’s Hands

Mama’s hands

Mama’s hands were a picture of

gentleness, hard work, and integrity.

A picture of generations —

from childhood to mother,

to grandmother and great-grandmother.

Life continues – we grow and mature

and grow old and older still.

Her hands were gentle and firm,

Strong and kind –  as a child,

as a mother and a grandmother.

Daughter, sister, cousin, aunt, mother,

grandmother and great-grandmother

–and friend.

I see the picture and I remember

how she worked with those hands —

why they are weary and worn

and I am grateful.

I see the beauty of her hands 

and I remember there was no shame

in belonging to the woman

with these weathered hands.

My mama’s hands were beautiful

and I remember her today

with admiration, appreciation, and with love.

 

 

This photo was taken the summer of 2009, six months before our mama went to Heaven. It was our last family reunion with her, and we knew it would be. The hands belong to my mama, my sister Loretta, her daughter Rachel and Rachel’s daughter Rebecca.