THE BROTHERS

Clean white shirts, blue serge pants,
Two frightened little lads,
No suitcases, no passports,
The clothes they wore were all they had.

Brown eyes, big in wonderment,
Scrubbed clean little faces
In their pockets, photographs,
Of family, friends, and places.

"Run quick!" their Mama told them,
"And don't look back at me."
She pushed them towards the plane,
Then let her tears fall free.

Their blood was mixed; they were four and six,
On an orphan's plane in terror,
Unaware they'd left their native land,
And their unselfish mom forever.

But God looks after tiny hearts,
He made sure they had each other,
They gripped one another's little hands,
While longing for their Mother.

America! America!
The Land of Opportunity!
Tell that to two little guys,
Now torn away from family.

Yet time can be kind to little ones,
And years fly by with speed,
When one's busy growing, learning, doing,
And fulfilling youthful needs.

Sometimes at night the boys talked,
About their Mama and their home,
They vowed one day they would go back,
When they were men and grown.

Then they matured through the years,
Becoming fine, strong men,
Proud of their foreign heritage,
Yet good Americans.

But roots are deep, and blood is thick,
And they did not forget their vow,
They both agreed the time had come
To go back to Mama now.

They fingered those old photographs,
And together made their plans,
They were going home to mother,
And to their motherland.

Babies, when they left the nest,
Now, men completely grown,
And with excitement in their hearts,
The two brothers headed home.

Without an address - not a clue,
How to find an unknown mother,
Who had changed so much in twenty years,
Just as had the brothers.

They tried the normal agencies,
But were stymied in their quest,
The old photos were not helpful
And nothing else was left.

Disappointed and discouraged,
They tried one last approach,
They placed a want-ad in a paper,
Which gave them meager hope.

Hard to believe what happened next,
But a friend, of a friend, of a friend
Read their story and passed it on,
Again, and again, and again.

Spreading to many villages,
Far up river went the word,
Which found an aging woman,
Who thought at first it was absurd.

She'd resigned herself some time ago,
To never see her sons again,
But miracle of miracles!
Up the river, came two young men.

First shock, confusion, disbelief,
Then smiles, hugs, and tears,
No clumsiness - no awkwardness,
Twenty years just disappeared.

Language - not a barrier,
There was no need for words,
Hearts spoke loud and clearly,
Every loving thought was heard.

A family reunited,
Empty arms were filled,
Just tears of joy shed now,
And aching hearts were healed.