
Eddie Fogler
Who would cry?
I often wonder
If I die first
If my mother would cry.
And if she cried,
Why?
What would make the tears appear?
My breathless body
Or her disappointment?
She always thought I could be more
Do more.
If she held me while I was dying,
Would she look down at me lovingly and say
“I told you so?”
And I would understand the nuance
If I had married a woman,
I would not be dying.
Did Mary cry for Jesus?
Why would she?
She knew what he was.
What he would be become.
What would become of him.
Was she proud of him?
Sing his praises.
Brag about his connections to her friends.
Recap his adventures to her village.
Or did Mary think he could do more?
Shying away from answering about her son.
Not mentioning he was traveling with men.
Did Mary ever try to change Jesus?
Even with her faith,
I think my mother would.
She would tell Jesus he was too smart for carpentry
To go back to school to be a doctor.
To settle down with a nice girl
To move down the street from her
And not to run off with twelve men.
For my mother,
Being the “Son of God”
Could be just as disappointing as
“Mom, I’m gay.”