Tide of Motherhood by Ashley Whittemore

Motherhood pulls
at me like a
tide sweeping me
in
one moment I’m
swimming and
basking in the
sweet
waters, washing away
the doubts of yesterday
and freeing me to
be
free from the
ties that tie me
down with giggles
and
creativity flowing
unbridled and silly
words tangled up
together
as little hands and
feet grow quickly
surpassing mine when
suddenly
--so sudden—
the tide shifts and
I am lost and
I am not sure
I can handle the
gut-wrenching
reality
that this is all slip,
slip, slipping away
one tick-tock at a
time
and not a
single soul can
come to terms with
this
reality unless they
build a wall
and guard their
heart
and turn away
because nothing
can ever make it
stop
bodies keep growing
and personalities they
flourish and in
these there is
both
joy and heartache
too wretched for
the human heart
to
hold.

Ashley is a writer, poet, and recovering people pleaser. She, her husband, and their three children lived in the Amazon region of Brazil and Colombia for several years. While they no longer live there full-time, they continue to serve as part of the leadership of The Amazon Network, an organization they founded in 2013. In her free time, she can be found triaging the needs of her garden, houseplants, and chickens. She can be found on Instagram @ash.whittemore.