Tuesday, September 22, 2009
A Different Child
poem by Pandora MacMillian
People notice
There's a special glow around you.
You grow
Surrounded by love,
Never doubting you are wanted;
Only look at the pride and joy
In your mother and father's eyes.
And if sometimes
Between the smiles
There's a trace of tears,
One day
You'll understand.
You'll understand
There was once another child
A different child
Who was in their hopes and dreams.
That child will never outgrow the baby clothes
That child will never keep them up at night
In fact, that child will never be any trouble at all.
Except sometimes, in a silent moment,
When mother and father miss so much
That different child.
May hope and love wrap you warmly
And may you learn the lesson forever
How infinitely precious
How infinitely fragile
Is this life on earth.
One day, as a young man or woman
You may see another mother's tears
Another father's silent grief
Then you, and you alone
Will understand
And offer the greatest comfort.
When all hope seems lost,
You will tell them
With great compassion,
"I know how you feel.
I'm only here
Because my mother tried again."
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I am Pandora Diane MacMillan* NOT MacMillian! (formerly Waldron),
ReplyDeleteauthor of the poem, "A Different Child" written on March 4, 1999,
which you have posted to your web site.
It is dedicated to Madoka Marietta Rosalie
Waldron, and to all children whose parents will always miss...A Different Child.
The poem appears on FictionPress
www.fictionpress.com/s/87202/1/A-Diffferent-Child.
Please include in your copy of the poem my original dedication:
"------for Madoka Marietta Rosalie, from your mother,
Pandora Diane Waldron*--------March 4, 1999.
Remembering, with love, and not with sadness,
our Special Angel, Rhiannon Roxane,
who left this world 2 years ago today."
Rhiannon Roxane died of SIDS (Sudden Infant Death Syndrome) at 31 days old. I deliberately did not include this information with the poem, because I was very much aware of all the other mothers, many of
whom I talked to on SPALS,www.spals.com who have lost one or more babies to miscarriage, stillbirth, or other causes other than SIDS to infant
death, and I wanted the poem to speak, with compassion, to all mothers in this situation.
There are some other errors in the re-posting of my poem which have
occurred on some web sites:
A Different Child is not just the title, it is the first line of the
poem, as follows:
"A different child,
People notice
There's a special glow around you."
These lines refer to the new healthy baby who was born, not to the other different child, who passed away. However, the phrase "a
different child" also later on refers to the child who was lost:
"A different child
Who was in their hopes and dreams."
In other words, in the historical manner of poetry, "a different
child" has more than one meaning.
If my words can bring joy, hope or comfort to others, it is in this
way that I continue to honour the legacy of Rhiannon Roxane. Let your
child's memory be a living one, sharing the love you gave with others,
and not a cold piece of stone.
Sincerely,
(Ms.) Pandora Diane MacMillan