Everywhere I go

She's with me all the time. When I wash my hair, I remember when she'd wash my hair, gently keeping the shampoo from my eyes, careful that the water was not too hot or cold. She's in the crossword puzzles and in the clue, Meat with mint jelly. And 36 across, Wimbledon call. She's in yesterday's dreary weather, telling me not to let it get me down, there are lots of things to do inside. She's in the rings on my finger, the pearls in my ears. She's in the Easter cards I glance over with Happy Easter Mom printed on the front in swirling script. She's in the organization of my closet, the way I make my bed. She's in my heart when some struggle stumbles me and I recall her dignity and grace in the face of challenge. She's in my mind when I tell myself to hold my head high. She's in the tennis courts I pass when I walk the trail in the park, the tennis courts where I sat on the bleachers as a child, eating the popsicle she got me as she played her match. She's in every real estate sign I drive by. She's in the way I hold a fork, the way I use my knife, where I place my water glass. She's in my handwriting and the paper on which I write. She's in how I address a letter and how I answer the phone. She's the color navy and the fabric cotton, she's in the pages of every book I read. She's in every step, every move, she's behind every word. She is with me, everything I am, everywhere I go.