No mother should have to bury her child. Can you think of anything more tragic? Children should always outlive both of their parents. This is the natural order, but sometimes war happens. Sometimes war destroys the natural order. Today I had a memorial for my son.
I gave birth to six beautiful boys. They were all perfectly healthy and very strong. My eldest was the most ambitious, so he moved to the North to be a big business man. My other five sons remained down here in the South with me, although they all moved to different states. I've got one in South Carolina, Georgia, Florida, Mississippi, and Texas. If I were to be completely honest, I never wanted my eldest to go to the North. We do things differently here in the South, and I didn't think that he would adjust well to life up there. I was afraid he would change, but through his letters I learned that he really did enjoy living in the North. He had found his new home.
I got six letters when this stupid war began from my sons telling me that they were going to war. The problem was I couldn't take a side. I know I live in the South and I should side with the South, but my eldest was fighting for the North. How can I be against one my sons?
A letter came in the mail about a month ago. It was from a man I didn't know, but he said he knew my son. He told me my eldest son was dead. He was so young. He didn't deserve to die. Growing up he was the sweetest little boy and he was so good to his younger brothers. You see, I lost my husband after my last son was born so my eldest had to step up and be there for his brothers. I would have freed all my slaves willingly if it could have prevented the war. Some people tell me that I am lucky because I still have five other healthy sons. That doesn't make the loss of my eldest easier. No mother should have to bury her son.
The memorial was beautiful. I buried a box of all his favorite things as a kid in the backyard of our home. It's a miracle we still have this house, but that's a story for another time. All of his brothers came down for this event because they loved their brother. In the end those Southern boys and now dead Northern boy were still family.
This is the reason why I am writing this letter. To hopefully remind a few of you Southerners that the North is still our family. The United States are just that, united. I know you will call me unpatriotic for saying this, but the dead never die in vain. Really they were both fighting for unity, just two different kinds. Brothers and Sisters, it is time to be a family again.
Let us be kind to our Northern brothers staying here in the South. Let us open our doors and show them warmth. Let us bury our dead in pride. Let us be stronger than we have ever been and unite with the North. We lost the war, but we still have hope for another day.
Sincerely,
A Mother
Author's Note:
So today I decided to explore the idea of a mother having to bury their child after a war. This sadly is a scenario that has been faced throughout history. I feel like it is an incredibly relatable topic, and a sad one at that. I was inspired by the death of Karna, who was the son of Surya and Kunti. He is a brother of the Pandavas, but not a Pandava himself. This is a story from the Mahabharata. I know in the Civil War family members were fighting family members, so I wanted to place my story in this time frame. I wanted to explore the emotions that a mother might have felt if she had sons fighting on both sides. Although I do not know if a mother had sons fighting on both sides, I believe it is highly likely. I enjoyed writing this story, but it was also hard to write. It was hard to give voice to something that I have no personal experience with. It was hard to find the words to use to express that much pain. War is such a horrible reality. I hope you enjoy my story and the emotion behind it.
Picture Info: Civil War
