Dectina Refrain, Poetry, Theme Prompt, Writing Challenge, Writing Prompts

She Paused

Nancy's Notes 🖊️♬

Written for David’s Wea’ve Written Weekly.
Dawn is our PoW this week; her prompt is
to write a Dectina Refrain about mothers.
This is my poem for my mother-in-law.

When my mother-in-law spoke with someone, she was totally focused; everything else took a backseat. The laundry, the dishes …. they’d all be there later. Hours spent with me and my husband over the Sunday Times crossword puzzle, cigarettes, and a pot of coffee are cherished memories. Everything I know about garden-ing and houseplants was gleaned from her. She paused and made time for the people and things that really mattered. She passed away far too soon. She was my role model, my chosen mother, and I loved her. This poem is dedicated to her.

My husband, my mother-in-law & our firstborn, 1978
© NAR

Grace
poured out
when we met.
She paused her work,
put the coffee on,
and plated the cookies.
Me, a stranger in her house;
her son’s girlfriend, warmly welcomed.
Four years later, my mother-in-law.
Grace poured out when we met; she paused her work.

NAR©2026
#W3

Nancy’s Notes: Dectina Refrain: 1st line is 1 syllable, 2nd line is 2 syllables, 3rd line is 3 syllables, and so on for 9 lines; the 10th line is comprised of the first four lines as one stand-alone sentence.

This is “Song for Mother-In-Law” by The Lyrical Lanterns (auto generated)

W3 Prompt #210: Wea’ve Written Weekly

Everything on The Elephant’s Trunk was created by me, except where otherwise indicated. Thanks for your consideration. NAR©2017-present.

37 thoughts on “She Paused”

    1. Val, isn’t it wonderful to have such fantastic women in our lives? We know better than anyone just how wrong it is when people claim mothers-in-law are from hell. Ours were gifts from heaven. I wish I had a little more time with her. Thank you so much for sharing your thoughts. 😌

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