You call for me at midnight,
You call for me at four.
Sometimes with a gurgle,
More often with a roar.
The night is big and lonely,
And you are oh so small.
You’d like to see your mummy.
And so, my love, you call.
It’s late and I am sleepy,
And so, my love, I grumble.
And as I pick you up again
You hear my tired mumble.
But nonetheless I hold you,
Rock you back to sleep.
I promised I’d be there for you;
A promise that I’ll keep.
Then maybe later down the track,
(In eighteen years or more!)
You’ll call me once again, my love,
At two, or three, or four.
And once again I’ll grumble,
I’ll moan that it is late.
But I’ll always come and find you,
I’ll never make you wait.
And there might come a day,
When you’re a parent too.
And in the middle of the night
Your child will call for you.
And then you’ll understand
That precious love so deep.
You wouldn’t trade it in
For a thousand nights of sleep.
Yet sometimes you’ll be tired,
You’ll think you’ve had enough.
Then you can call on me, my love;
Sleepless nights are tough.
Whether you’re a baby,
Or when you’re fully grown.
You can always call on me, my love,
You’ll never be alone.
And though there’ll come a day
When we will be apart.
You still can always call on me;
I’ll live on in your heart.
How do you do that? You are amazing!
Even though you are tired and not feeling so well,
you write a little story that only you can tell so well!
Your talent is amazing, it simply blows me away
I could sit with a coffee and read your poetry all day!
Sorry my attempt to respond in rhyme lol, I’ll leave it to you from now on. I really enjoyed this because I feel exactly the same way, although as a parent I miss sleep, I still love that cuddle in the middle of the night, but luckily for me mine are a bit older now so it’s not every night anymore. Thanks for linking #mg
I love your rhyme response. I have a feeling that when my headache is (hopefully) gone and I’m a bit less tired I’m going to re-read my poem and see all the problems, but I guess that will give it an authentic edge when my kids read it when they’re older! Thanks for hosting x
What a heart-touching poem!
When my three were little, I asked my mother how she kept going. She said, “You get a second wind.”
I had to wait about 20 years for it, but it was worth waiting for.
Meanwhile, I applaud your devotion. It’s something money cannot buy.
Thank you Anne. I’m looking for my second wind right now!
Lovely ?? xxx
Thank you 🙂
I love the rhythm of your poems, they always flow so well while telling a story. The sentiment in this is wonderful, the continuum of sleepless nights 🙂 #prose4t
Thanks Sara. I’m hoping that somewhere in there I get some sleep at least! 🙂
This made me cry xx
#Prose4T
And yours made me cry, but for different reasons obviously. That’s why I love this linky x
Ah that is so lovely. #coolmumclub
Thank you 🙂
This is so so lovely. Imagining the future right now…xxx Thank you for sharing this little piece of magic with #coolmumclub
Thank you and thanks for hosting xx
You know I love this because I told you on twitter, but I do! I love it. I really needed to read it this week as well…think we’re in for another tricky one tonight so I’ll try to bear it in mind. My husband said I should write it on my arm. Not sure i’ve got space but it’s fair to say it struck a chord with both of us! Thank you very much #coolmumclub
Oh that’s so lovely. We’ve been having such a tough week too. We got a bit out of routine over the weekend and then both the kids got sick and they’ve been up and down all night. I feel like a zombie. When I wrote the poem I was actually crying. I think that one of the best things about blogging is that you realise that you’re really not alone. Good luck for tonight and thanks again for the beautiful comment x
Another awesome poem and I know my sister-in-law will relate to every word. Brilliant writing 🙂 x
Thanks so much for your lovely comment, and for sharing Lisa x
This is so completely beautiful. It gave me goosebumps and brought a tear to my eye. Brilliant piece of writing. Thank you for linking to #Prose4T. Hope to see you tomorrow x
Thanks Victoria. Thanks for hosting. I’m looking forward to the next round 🙂
Wonderful poem, absolutely wonderful.
Thank you so much for sharing the poem (which I stumbled upon via Stolensleep.com btw).
Thank you so much for taking the time to come to the site and leave such a lovely comment. 🙂
Recently I sat up all night with my grandson when he was poorly and his parents were just so exhausted. It reminded me of the nights I sat up with my son. Your poem reflects my thoughts perfectly. Thankyou.
My sister sent me this poem to cheer me up after the sleepless nights and it made me cry! It made me realise that sleepless nights won’t be forever, and there’s nothing more lovely than looking at my little ones face in the middle of the night and seeing her little face light up cause she’s seen her mummy. I’d love to get this poem on a card or a little plaque or something for in her room. Is there any way I could do this?
Thankyou
Thank you so much. I’m always so glad to hear this. I’m sorry I didn’t reply to this sooner. I’ve been so busy with my little people that I’ve been neglecting the website. Perhaps you are through the sleepless phase by now! I’m more than happy for you to print it for yourself if you’re still there and need that deep breath and perspective in the middle of the night. I briefly set up an etsy shop to sell prints, but had neither the design sense nor the business sense to make it feasible! I can send you one of the cards I have sitting in my cupboard – I love posting things! – but you can probably make it look prettier on your own. I had an email the other day from someone who had cross stitched a copy of it all out for her daughter! So sweet 🙂 Here’s to good sleeps and contented babies x