Mater (Mother)

Mater Dei (Mother of God)

     A woman’s path in father’s world, a Sabbath string —     

          The power of that vision does not die.

Mater Stella (Mother of Stars)

     A birth, subordinating, irreproducible;

          The umbilical beginning and ending.

Mater Mare (Mother of the Seas)

     The mold in which we’re shaped, which we must break.

           A string of circumstances.

Mater Omni (Mother of All)

     The record of our past, our future —

          The tie that binds, our apron strings.

Patricia Andrews