TO MY MOTHER Lester A. Rowland - 5/13/1935 Dear Mother: As I sit all alone in the bright sunshine I think of you, dear Mother of mine. Dear Mother of mine, these lines I send To tell you what a good Mother you’ve been. You almost died bringing me here, I’m grateful for that, my mother dear. Had no idea there was so much pain, Till my own dear wife had in that bed lain. I fell out of the window when I was small, And I know it must have been a great fall. But you fixed me up, better’n I can tell And nursed me so that I soon was well. You’ve tied up for me many a toe And also soothed my tales of woe. You’ve nursed me thru the measles and mumps, Fixed up all my sores and doctored my bumps. When I had smallpox and nearly died, You stayed all that time close to my side. When the Doctor had done all he could do, You kept right on and pulled me thru. When old Luce ran away with me And threw me into the muddy sea, You grabbed old Luce turned her around I’ll never forget your face full of grief And how quickly it changed to one of relief. One day when a child, I got caught in a fence; My playmates they laughed, they thought it immense. They guyed me, they jeered and danced with glee Till you came at last and set me free. Now why do I this incident select? You really saved my self respect. At home you taught me to spell and read, So when school I entered, I took the lead. You taught me so well to recite, That audiences have listened to me with delight. I wonder now when we all were small How you found time to teach or train us at all. I can see now what a time you have had, For now I have my own little lassies and lad. When I was a youth, my life very complex You left in my room a book about sex. To talk of such things I’ve been mighty shy, But that book helped me out, made me deny Myself worldly pleasures, enjoyed by most men That book probably saved me from many a sin. One day when I was feeling quite blue About a girl who’d proved untrue, You wrote a letter. It helped a great deal, And made me a whole lot better feel. When I asked you in, an offhand way Whether to marry or to single stay, You advised me the single life depart, Even though I could see it was breaking your heart, For you saw then as all good mothers can That married life is the life for a man. Your advice I took. I’ll never regret I’ve been the happiest married man yet. Oh, I could keep on naming, one by one, The ways you have helped me and never get done. I could write a book from cover to cover All about how you’ve been such a good Mother. How happy I am, no one knows That tomorrow I can wear a red, red rose. But I better stop, no longer you pester With lots of love, Your son, Lester