The Day My Mother Felt Good

 

The Day My Mother Felt Good

Monday she’d been crying a lot
thinking she’d never walk again.

It was the Jerry Lewis Telethon
that did it to her, listening to him
talk about the kids who can’t walk.
She felt he was talking about her.
My mom, just one of Jerry’s kids.

She cried a lot. But then Tuesday,
the therapist got her up and walking,
twice, up and down the corridor
almost to the front door, and she felt
maybe everything would be better.

On the phone that night my mom
was happy and wanted to talk.
She’d seen a new doctor, a woman
named Winston, and she liked her.

My Mom joked about the doc’s name,
saying, “Winston tastes good like a
cigarette should,” like in the old ads.
And the doctor told my mother
the blood thinning medicine
she was taking was working,
and soon they’d be sending her
for tests to see if the blood clots
in both her legs have vanished.

So all and all, that Tuesday night
my mom was feeling pretty good.