Within the folds of her mind
For every seam there is assigned
A memory that is now canned
That which became her life’s brand
It girds the maze that is confined
Within the folds of her mind
Within the folds of her mind
Dislike of coffee now enshrined
Each water fountain where she was banned
Indignities suffered firsthand
Nightmares you hope never to find
Within the folds of her mind
Within the folds of the mind
Is reciprocity outlined
She loves all things small or grand
Friends and family with equal demand
Even her cruel words were still kind
Within the folds of her mind
Within the folds of her mind
Are holiday dinners all refined
Homegrown ale that she manned
To be anything thing but bland
Secret recipes for which we pined
Within the folds of her mind
Within the folds of her mind
Where her faith was divined
Her heart the first to understand
The touch that is the Master’s hand
God’s grace was her soul defined
Within the folds of her mind
Within the folds of her mind
Thoughts not working as designed
She sometimes simply does not understand
I’m the adult whose hide she occasionally tanned
She’s slowly losing the ties that bind
Within the folds of her mind
Within the folds of her mind
An unfair fate, to one who shined
Now a fading cerebral quicksand
All that it held and could withstand
Just enough there to remind
Within the folds of her mind
<>==========<>==========<>
Raivenne-lations 
I love this form! Its strong and leaves the reader pining for more 🙂
Excellent write.
The sad state of dementia, so sad when you have to parent the parent… somehow it’s those connections that doesn’t work any longer.. terrific form with the repetitions and rhymes.
i suppose the
most endeaRinG
pArt of poetry
is it is
a soul
that cannot
be ravaged
by the
winds
of
age..
so now
that paRt
of her now
lives again
in your eyes
of poetry that
remember the
greaTEST lights
of
her..:)
My impression was of the memory loss, a fading cerebral quicksand ~
It is a sad and unfortunate state if one is suffering from this ~
Thanks for joining us at OLN ~ Happy weekend ~
This speaks to me of one who was a vibrant, no-nonsense, but very loving and gracious woman who suffered great indignities, but whose mind is enveloping some of her memories to dementia. It’s natural to want to help someone who can no longer do for themselves but it’s a bit odd when that person is your own parent. There is a role reversal for sure, as I have found. I like how the message is repeated in your poem…really hits home.
This must be a hard period in life. The repetitions in the poem work well to convey the message.
‘within the folds of her mind’ is a beautiful verse and it gains in depth and gravitas with each repetition. A wonderful description of your mother, with all her quirks and things which made her loveable, and then that verse which made my heart jump to my throat: ‘she slowly losing the ties that bind’…
This is so sad and captures more than just ageing but the folding in of the mind. Your words repeated are very evocative. My daughter is working with dementia patients and thinks their minds are so amazing! She loves the random associations but of course she does not have the loss of family member in ‘ the folds of their mind’