Tweetspeak Poetry

  • Home
  • FREE prompts
  • Earth Song
  • Every Day Poems—Subscribe! ✨
  • Teaching Tools
  • Books, Etc.
  • Patron Love

By Heart: ‘Mother to Son’ + New A.E. Stallings Challenge

By Megan Willome Leave a Comment

Indonesian woman weaving

Mother to Son: No Crystal Stair

Right before Easter I walked into Bath & Body Works to see if they had any candles on sale, and they did not—everything was full price, in preparation for Mother’s Day. I didn’t want a faux-mother blend of flower-scented cocktails. I wanted something stronger, a candle for a mother who falls and does not give up. Because I have found motherhood to be complicated, I like complicated poems about it. I walked out of the store without buying anything, with the words of Langston Hughes’ “Mother to Son” ringing in my mind.

Langston Hughes is one of our Take Your Poet to Work Day faves. He was a central figure in the Harlem Renaissance, a movement of Black artists, musicians, and writers in the 1920s. (We’ve read Passing, by Nella Larsen, who was part of the movement as well.) Hughes was criticized by some Blacks for his portrayal of middle- and working-class people, while others celebrated him for these very portrayals. He was among the first Black writers to make a living as a novelist, playwright, and poet. His mother, Carolina (Carrie) Langston Mercer Hughes, attended Oberlin College and was a writer herself. But her life was filled with hardship. Langston was mostly raised by his grandmother, Carrie’s mother.

As I have sat with this poem, I’ve been thinking about what the mother described by Hughes might be imagining when twice she says, “Life for me ain’t been no crystal stair.” What is she picturing? My mind flashes to the ice staircase Elsa builds with a flick of her magical wrist in Frozen. That staircase is designed to isolate and protect. The non-existent crystal stair in this poem, if it did exist, would serve as a means for this mother to pull up her son. And it seems he needs pulling.

In the middle of the poem, she addresses him:

So boy, don’t you turn back.
Don’t you set down on the steps
’Cause you finds it’s kinder hard.
Don’t you fall now—

Why would she say those things unless he was the kind of boy who did turn back, who did sit down when things get hard, who did sometimes fall?

I’ve also been fascinated by the repetition of the contraction I’se, which occurs three times. The poem was first published 100 years ago, in 1922, which means this word has been in our lexicon for quite a while, if not in our grammar texts. But grammar is ever-changing.

I had a college professor who once wrote j’eet on the blackboard and asked the class if any of us could tell him what it meant. Nope. It’s a contraction, he said. Still no. This class meets right after lunch—I hear you say this every day. No again. Then he spoke the word: J’eet? And we heard it: Did you eat?

J’eet has not officially entered our vocabulary, but I hear I’se all the time. Difference in tone provides subtle difference in meaning: whether you are doing the thing or are about to do it or have been doing it and will continue to do it until the end of time, forever and ever, amen.

Like the mother in this poem. She will always be climbin’, always be goin’, always be climbin’ (it’s worth saying twice). Life hasn’t been what she thought it would be—not for her and not for her son. She doesn’t need candles that smell like lavender mimosas and peach bellinis. She needs a good sturdy pair of shoes. And a son to appreciate her, as I believe Langston Hughes did.

Normally I end this column with a recording of myself reciting By Heart the month’s poem. As a white woman, I am reluctant to record myself speaking the words of one of America’s most honored Black poets. Although I found a recording of Hughes reading “Mother to Son“, I found something even better: I found a version read by Viola Davis. This one is for all the mothers who have not yet found that crystal stair.

By Heart for June

Did you listen to Sergei Prokofiev’s Peter and the Wolf when you were growing up? Or did you hear it performed by a symphony on a school field trip? For June we’ll learn A.E. Stallings’ poem “Listening to Peter and the Wolf with Jason, aged 3″ By Heart.

Listening to Peter and the Wolf with Jason, Aged 3

Eyes wide open, grinning ear to ear,
Balanced between the thrill of fear and fear,
He clutches at my skirt to keep me near

And will not let me leave him by himself
In the living room where Peter and the Wolf
Emerges from the speakers on the shelf.

He likes Peter’s jaunty swing of strings,
The reedy waddle of the duck, the wings
That flute up in the tree, but still he clings

(Even though for now it’s just the cat
Picking its slinky way through sharp and flat);
He isn’t frightened of a clarinet,

And laughs at grandfather’s bluster and bassoon,
But keeps his ear out for another tune
At the shadowy edge of the wood, and coming soon.

Where is the wolf? he asks me every chance
He gets, and I explain each circumstance;
Though it’s not as if he’s heard it only once—

You’d think he’d know by now. Deep in the wood,
Or under the tree, or sent away for good
To the zoo
, I say, and think he’s understood,

And weary of the question and the classic,
I ask him where the wolf is. With grave logic
He answers me, The wolf is in the music.

And so it is. Just then, out of the gloom,
The cymbals menace and the French horns loom.
And the music is loose. The music’s in the room.

–A.E. Stallings

 

Photo by cloud.shepherd, Creative Commons, via Flickr. Post by Megan Willome.

Browse more By Heart

rainbow crow front cover outlined
5 star

“Megan Willome has captured the essence of crow in this delightful children’s collection. Not only do the poems introduce the reader to the unusual habits and nature of this bird, but also different forms of poetry as well.”

—Michelle Ortega, poet and children’s speech pathologist

  • Author
  • Recent Posts
Megan Willome
Megan Willome
Megan Willome is a writer, editor, and author of The Joy of Poetry: How to Keep, Save & Make Your Life With Poems and Rainbow Crow: poems in and out of form. Her day is incomplete without poetry, tea, and a walk in the dark.
Megan Willome
Latest posts by Megan Willome (see all)
  • Perspective: The Two, The Only: Calvin and Hobbes - December 16, 2022
  • Children’s Book Club: A Very Haunted Christmas - December 9, 2022
  • By Heart: ‘The night is darkening round me’ by Emily Brontë - December 2, 2022

Filed Under: A Poem in Every Heart, Blog, By Heart, Langston Hughes, Mother Poems

Write with Us

About Megan Willome

Megan Willome is a writer, editor, and author of The Joy of Poetry: How to Keep, Save & Make Your Life With Poems and Rainbow Crow: poems in and out of form. Her day is incomplete without poetry, tea, and a walk in the dark.

Leave a Reply Cancel reply

Your email address will not be published. Required fields are marked *

Cute Comic

😊

The Sadbook Collections

A stick-figure human sure to capture your heart.

Take How to Read a Poem

Get the Introduction, the Billy Collins poem, and Chapter 1

get the sample now

Welcome to Tweetspeak

New to Tweetspeak Poetry? Start here, in The Mischief Café. You're a regular? Check out our June Menu.

Patron Love

❤️

Welcome a little patron love, when you help keep the world poetic.

Your Comments

  • Dheepa R. Maturi on Poet Laura on the Moon
  • L.L. Barkat on Poetry Club Tea Date ✨ The Color of Eyes
  • Beverley on Poetry Club Tea Date ✨ The Color of Eyes
  • L.L. Barkat on Poet Laura on the Moon

How to Write Poetry

Get Every Day Poems

Featured In

We're happy to have been featured in...

The Huffington Post

The Paris Review

The New York Observer

Tumblr Book News

Stay in Touch With Us

Categories

Learn to Write Form Poems

How to Write an Acrostic

How to Write a Ballad

How to Write a Catalog Poem

How to Write a Ghazal

How to Write a Haiku

How to Write an Ode

How to Write a Pantoum

How to Write a Rondeau

How to Write a Sestina

How to Write a Sonnet

How to Write a Villanelle

5 FREE POETRY PROMPTS

Get 5 FREE inbox poetry prompts from the popular book How to Write a Poem

Shakespeare Resources

Poetry Classroom: Sonnet 18

Common Core Picture Poems: Sonnet 73

Sonnet 104 Annotated

Sonnet 116 Annotated

Character Analysis: Romeo and Juliet

Character Analysis: Was Hamlet Sane or Insane?

Why Does Hamlet Wait to Kill the King?

10 Fun Shakespeare Resources

About Shakespeare: Poet and Playwright

Top 10 Shakespeare Sonnets

See all 154 Shakespeare sonnets in our Shakespeare Library!

Explore Work From Black Poets

About Us

  • • A Blessing for Writers
  • • Annual Theme 2022: Perspective
  • • Annual Theme 2021: Generous
  • • Our Story
  • • Meet Our Team
  • • Literary Citizenship
  • • Poet Laura
  • • Poetry for Life: The 5 Vital Approaches
  • • T. S. Poetry Press – All Books
  • • Contact Us

Write With Us

  • • 5 FREE Poetry Prompts-Inbox Delivery
  • • 30 Days to Richer Writing Workshop
  • • Poetry Prompts
  • • Submissions
  • • The Write to Poetry

Read With Us

  • • All Our Books
  • • Book Club
  • • Every Day Poems—Subscribe! ✨
  • • Literacy Extras
  • • Poems to Listen By: Audio Series
  • • Poet-a-Day
  • • Poets and Poems
  • • 50 States Projects
  • • Charlotte Perkins Gilman Poems Library
  • • Edgar Allan Poe Poems Arts & Experience Library
  • • William Blake Poems Arts & Experience Library
  • • William Shakespeare Sonnet Library

Celebrate With Us

  • • Poem on Your Pillow Day
  • • Poetic Earth Month
  • • Poet in a Cupcake Day
  • • Poetry at Work Day
  • • Random Acts of Poetry Day
  • • Take Your Poet to School Week
  • • Take Your Poet to Work Day

Gift Ideas

  • • Every Day Poems
  • • Our Shop
  • • Everybody Loves a Book!

Connect

  • • Donate
  • • Blog Buttons
  • • By Heart
  • • Shop for Tweetspeak Fun Stuff

Copyright © 2023 Tweetspeak Poetry · FAQ, Disclosure & Privacy Policy

We serve poetry with our cookies. Because that's the way it should be.
We serve poetry with your cookies on our website to give you the most relevant experience by remembering your preferences and repeat visits. By clicking “Accept”, you... accept the cookies with a smile.
Do not sell my personal information.
Cookie SettingsAccept
update cookie prefs

Privacy Overview

This website uses cookies to improve your experience while you navigate through the website. Out of these, the cookies that are categorized as necessary are stored on your browser as they are essential for the working of basic functionalities of the website. We also use third-party cookies that help us analyze and understand how you use this website. These cookies will be stored in your browser only with your consent. You also have the option to opt-out of these cookies. But opting out of some of these cookies may affect your browsing experience.
Necessary
Always Enabled
Necessary cookies are absolutely essential for the website to function properly. These cookies ensure basic functionalities and security features of the website, anonymously.
CookieDurationDescription
cookielawinfo-checkbox-analytics11 monthsThis cookie is set by GDPR Cookie Consent plugin. The cookie is used to store the user consent for the cookies in the category "Analytics".
cookielawinfo-checkbox-functional11 monthsThe cookie is set by GDPR cookie consent to record the user consent for the cookies in the category "Functional".
cookielawinfo-checkbox-necessary11 monthsThis cookie is set by GDPR Cookie Consent plugin. The cookies is used to store the user consent for the cookies in the category "Necessary".
cookielawinfo-checkbox-others11 monthsThis cookie is set by GDPR Cookie Consent plugin. The cookie is used to store the user consent for the cookies in the category "Other.
cookielawinfo-checkbox-performance11 monthsThis cookie is set by GDPR Cookie Consent plugin. The cookie is used to store the user consent for the cookies in the category "Performance".
viewed_cookie_policy11 monthsThe cookie is set by the GDPR Cookie Consent plugin and is used to store whether or not user has consented to the use of cookies. It does not store any personal data.
Functional
Functional cookies help to perform certain functionalities like sharing the content of the website on social media platforms, collect feedbacks, and other third-party features.
Performance
Performance cookies are used to understand and analyze the key performance indexes of the website which helps in delivering a better user experience for the visitors.
Analytics
Analytical cookies are used to understand how visitors interact with the website. These cookies help provide information on metrics the number of visitors, bounce rate, traffic source, etc.
Advertisement
Advertisement cookies are used to provide visitors with relevant ads and marketing campaigns. These cookies track visitors across websites and collect information to provide customized ads.
Others
Other uncategorized cookies are those that are being analyzed and have not been classified into a category as yet.
SAVE & ACCEPT