If I Only Had an Hour

If I only had an hour, Mum,
I would sit at your feet like I used to,
letting your voice fold over me
like the jumpers you knitted with love,
each stitch a lesson, each thread a prayer.

I would say, thank you.
Thank you for being the best mum a child could ask for,
for hands that held, that healed, that toiled,
for love that never wavered,
even when the world tried to shake you.

Mum, you should see the world today.
Marvin asked, what’s going on?
And still, nobody can answer.
There’s hunger in the land, wars in the air,
justice lost like a song we forgot the words to.
I wish I could sit in your kitchen,
where truth was served alongside every meal.
You always told me, no matter what, we stand.
Because to stand for nothing
is to fall for everything.

Thank you for the lessons, Mum.
The ones tucked inside every be careful,
woven into the way you carried struggle
like it was light, like it was nothing.
You taught me to keep walking,
even when my feet ached from the journey.
You showed me that faith is more than Saturday morning,
that love is more than words.
You believed in me
before I even knew how to believe in myself.

And oh, the food.
The way you turned a pot into a sanctuary,
how a meal from your hands
could heal more than medicine.
Mum, I taste your care in every bite,
in every dish I try to get just right,
but it is never the same without you.

And the knitting.
Not just the jumpers, warm against the cold,
but the way you wove strength into my bones,
threaded dignity into my soul,
how you wrapped me in a love so thick,
not even death could unravel it.

If I only had an hour,
I would tell you again how much I love you,
how much I miss you,
how I long for the day when waiting turns to reunion.

One day, Mum. One day.
The trumpet will sound,
and you, and your mum, and your grandma,
and cousins, and uncles, and friends
will rise first.
And then, I will follow.

We will be caught up together,
wrapped in glory, bathed in light.
No more goodbyes. No more waiting.
Just eternity. Just joy. Just home.

Until that day, Mum,
I will keep standing.
I will keep walking.
I will keep believing.
Just like you taught me.