All Of My Greatest Thanks! Poem by Efren Petalver Carranza

Let my heart speaks to you now, my brothers
Sisters who raised me by the absence of mother
That weaned my childhood's ignorance of death
And of which love I had yet to learn since birth

My mind while it's still unsullied to its buoy
Fields of memories wherein my boyhood a coy
Pieces of right and wrong, like a puzzle to fit
One picture, at the end, you molded me right

Though I envy your children, siblings of my father
You shared all your wisdom as if I am one of yours
To grandpa who stilled me yet all my fears
And grandma who embraced me to be braver

Siblings of my mother you all fed my hunger
Though I know not I was a bee of your shelter
To grandma who taught me the value of sharing
And the diktat of how to wait with patience

Indeed, my heart leaves no one was part of me
Your love that nurtured my growth and pride
But the truth to which I confer my greatest thanks
My father, my eldest sister: the braces of my stand

My wife and my two sons: the sources of my faith
Inspirational friends, cousins, nieces and nephews
Uncles and Aunts, you are all my wings of joy
And to God, this heart has now spoken the truth