Belated Wish Poem by Alexander Raju

Today, as you're laid down lifeless,
I realize how much you loved me;
Ignored how much love I returned,
But always transferred power
Into me, rejuvenating
My passing days, birth to old age.

I grew old but you never knew it;
I've been a little child for you;
Sometimes I wished to lisp and whinge,
Holding the seams of your apron;
You were four score and ten but fit
As you a mother's mind kept due.

Though I am aged three score and five,
You called me ‘child' and prayed for me,
I wish I were a child, firmly
Hold your hand and walk beside you;
I miss one to tell I'm lazy
And inquire whether I'm healthy.

In those days of lazy childhood,
You poured cold water on my face
While I was in sound morning sleep,
That I could get up and learn fresh;
You taught me to cultivate land,
And to cook my delicious food.

You taught me the ways of life tough,
To win the race and gain the crown;
Go in peace, my mother, I did
My best to make life a success,
Be worthy of your sacrifice
That we served the aim of our birth.

I obeyed you reluctantly,
But they all helped me to survive
In those hard days of making up
Of a man worthy of living;
Oh! Could again a chance to serve I get
As your son and pay back my duteous debt?