Wilted Flowers: Navigating Motherhood with Mother-wound

by Divi Maggo

Wilted Navigating Motherhood with Mother-wound

Wilted Flowers is more than a book of poetry; it is a companion for those on a healing journey. The poems navigate the complexities of motherhood with a mother-wound, exploring themes of pain, resilience, and hope. Each poem serves as a reminder that while the past may have left us wilted, we have the power to nurture ourselves back to wholeness.

"Wait till you have kids
that behave just like you.

But I did.
I did have kids that are just like me.

And I realized
how easy it was to love me.

How easy it was to be kind,
to not belittle and humiliate.

I have kids that are just like me,
but they will never feel my heartbreak."

This excerpt from the book encapsulates the heart of Wilted Flowers, highlighting a mother’s determination to protect her children from the pain she endured, ensuring they never feel the same heartbreak.

Genres: Poetry, Nonfiction, Self Help

168 pages, Paperback

Published August 8, 2024

Reviews

[Hannah's Corner]

It was okay… Not really what I was expecting.

[Trissa ᨒ ོ ☼]

It took me some time to read this; a little every night. I have been working through a lot of mother hurt, and Wilted Flower honestly just put into words what I’ve been feeling for years. It didn’t try to sugarcoat anything, but it also didn’t leave me sitting in the pain, it made me feel understood and a little more at peace with parts of myself I’ve kept quiet for a long time.

The way it was written felt real, like talking to someone who gets it. I caught myself nodding along, underlining lines, and just thinking, “Wow, same.” If you’ve ever had to raise yourself emotionally or felt the ache of wanting more from your mom than she could give, this book is for you.

It’s raw, comforting, and beautifully done. I’m so glad I read it.🤍

[Joy]

3⭐️A sad poetry read before bed each night. My pages covered in tears, lines highlighted and noted—this book got me. Not descriptive writing like I expected— a little odd on the formatting and overall layout, but a good read nonetheless.

“Did you also have an eggshell mother? Did the whole house mood depend on her mood? Were you hyper vigilant on her slight change in emotions? Did you miss your entire childhood trying to keep her happy? But nothing you did was enough. Nothing made her happy. Did you also have an eggshell mother? I’m so sorry if you did.”

“For all the people that grew up listening “I will give you something to cry about!”
Do you cry at everything now?
Sad, angry, overwhelmed,
Always trying to make a point?
When we needed a hug,
We were screamed at,
Humiliated, and belittled.”

“I love my mother, but I don’t like her.
I wish I did.
I wish we were best friends.
But we are not.
Her words cut like a knife,
I drown in her expectations.
I was never a perfect daughter,
But I tried to be.
I tried and tried until I couldn’t be.
I had to choose myself.
I had to get out.
She says she loves me, but she despises me.”

[Shelby]

"Your motherhood will outlive you."

[Caitlin Bramwell]

"The saddest part is, she would do it all over again in the name of we did our best."

Lovely collection - some bits were more emotional and original then others, some poems much stronger than others. A bit of a mixed bag but I loved the concept overall.

[Qaraline Guerard]

not as good as I was hoping

Maybe it’s bc it’s not my typical type of book, but it wasn’t what I hoped for. A good quick read if you need something to kill an hour or so.

Merged review:

Wasn’t what I was expecting. I was disappointed. It’s a good quick read if you’re looking to kill an hour or so.

[Jess]

Well I’m not sure it healed anything but it certainly made me feel. Didn’t much like the last chapter of poems though, when something calls you a “bad bitch” to make you feel better it immediately discredits itself. But there were definitely some gems in there. I hope I can break the cycle, cause I’m sure my mom tried and failed.

[Bekah Walters]

Some of these poems were so beautiful and thought provoking. Some did not resonate and that’s ok too.

[Fairygirl13]

This book was so beautiful. It made me cry. It reminded me so much of myself as a kid. Some of it also reminded me of people I know.

"The little girl that tried to be perfect,
but never was.
The little girl that cried herself to sleep every night,
thinking now she needs to make her mother happy tomorrow.
Crushing in the burden,
the tears burning in her eyes.
The little girl asking god to end it all,
would be better to have no daughter
than an imperfect one.
I am sorry I was unkind to you,
I am sorry I never spoke up.
I am sorry I never wiped your tears.
I am sorry I never let you be happy
without the burden of her expectations.
I am sorry no one noticed us drowning everyday.
I am sorry no one saved us.
I am sorry."


"The oldest daughter.
"We never had to worry about her" daughter.

The one that
took her father's anger,
The one who
wiped her mother's tears.

The therapist.
The caregiver.
The afterthought.

The one who lived for others,
But called selfish for doing one thing for herself.

The oldest daughter,
The tired one.
The broken one.
The misused one."


"And sometimes I feel my future self was with me,
when I used to cry myself to sleep every night.

How else would you explain me being alive today?

Even when the heart
was shattered in a million pieces,
I trusted my future self to glue it all back together.

My inner child trusted my future self then.
Just as I trust my future self now."

[Jenny-007]

Besonders gut gefallen hat mir an diesem Buch die Aufteilung in drei unterschiedliche Kapitel: feel - heal - the future is bright. Ebenso waren die Journal prompts eine wunderbare Überraschung, die zur Reflexion anregen.

Dieses Buch hat mir gut aufgezeigt, wie weit ich in meiner healing journey eigentlich schon gekommen bin, weil eben vor allem die Reflexionsfragen einem gut zeigen, wo man steht oder an welchen emotionalen Themen hinsichtlich generational trauma man eventuell noch zu knabbern hat.

Ich persönlich konnte mit den Verknüpfungen zu Gott einfach gar nicht relaten und fand vor allem das letzte Kapitel irgendwie nichts sagend, da hätte ich mir mehr Substanz gewünscht. So wirkten die Texte alles andere als bright, sondern vor allem wie affirmations, die nicht so richtig ankommen.

Aber: insbesondere der „feel“-Teil hat mich sehr oft an eigene Wunden erinnert, Erlebtes in Worte gefasst und nahbar gemacht. All in all auf jeden Fall für alle ein Buch, die sich mit ihrer mother wound oder generational trauma auseinandersetzen möchten.

[rose]

wilted formatting & unrelated poems

this is not the worst poetry book i've ever encountered, but its not a favorite. i really disliked the formatting, it was odd and hard to follow. the repeated pictures of the same flower, the added spotify playlist links, the lack of seperating poems, the journal prompts. it feels like it was trying to cover every basis, rather than offer additions.

this had a ton of potential. i highlighted some favorites, and really deeply loved a few of the poems and lines. but a lot of them didn't hit for me, or worse, seemed to have nothing to do with motherhood, the mother-wound, or childhood trauma. specifically, the last section, and the poem about being a reader. i think this would've been a higher rating for me if it had stuck to its own theme and been cut a bit shorter!

[Courtney]

Wilted Flowers was one of those books that hits deeper than expected. The themes around childhood trauma and emotional pain felt incredibly real, and there were moments that will stay with me going forward.
One line in particular completely broke me:
“I did have kids that are just like me… but they will never feel my heartbreak.”
That hit in a way I wasn’t prepared for. This book captures what it’s like to carry things silently, to feel misunderstood, and to be told you’re “too sensitive” and "hard to love" when you’re just trying to be heard.
I cried while reading this, and not many books can do that. It’s heavy, emotional, and deeply relatable in ways that hurt, but also in ways that feel seen.

[Akhila]

Wilted Flowers is a poetry collection I picked up randomly, and it turned out to be a deeply moving read. The poems explore the complexities of motherhood through the lens of unresolved childhood trauma and strained maternal relationships.

Many verses struck a nerve…raw, honest, and sometimes painful to read but that’s what made them powerful. The emotional weight of the collection lingers in the best way, offering both reflection and quiet healing.

It was an overall enjoyable and thought provoking experience. Go pick it up if you’re looking to add something meaningful and emotionally resonant to your collection.

[Liz]

I’m not really sure what I was expecting, but it did often feel like I was reading one of my composition notebooks filled with my own poetry.
This book is a personal collection of thoughts and feelings, separated into three sections: “Feel”, “Heal”, and “The future is bright”. I appreciate the author including companion playlists for each section of the book.
Reading this wasn’t necessarily healing for me, but it did make me nod in agreement many times. At the end, the author thanks the reader for being their “village”, so I think that us readers bearing witness to their healing while also acknowledging the same wounds in ourselves, is the entire point.

[Jess McCutcheon]

I had high hopes for this book, as I had been seeing poems from it all over my social media - but I felt like it was almost like a movie that shows all the good parts in the preview... it fell a bit flat for me. It absolutely had some beautiful, relatable and inspiring writing - but I don't think it hit the mark for me. I also feel like the title "navigating motherhood with mother wound" is a bit misleading.

[Felicia]

I don’t like poetry, but this one got me.

Wait till you have kids that behave just like you. But I did. I did have kids that are just like me. And I realized how easy it was to love me.

Why do you still hold onto things? It has been decades? Because the little girl is still sobbing from all the pain and hurt you caused. And I don't know how to make her stop.

I promise little one I will follow you around the world and never let you feel alone. A promise from a wounded mother.

[Simone Cassandra]

I love the journaling aspect of this book, it will be very therapeutic when I sit down and write. The Spotify playlists were a lovely surprise that took the journey of this book to the next level. Whilst I can’t relate to everything that is written as we had different experiences, some of it did resonate. The book is written beautifully.

[Tess _ readyendo]

Este poemario es uno de esos en los que siento que se me cae el corazón y a la vez se siente entendido.

I loved every single word, feels like my heart is screaming out loud every word.

I feel understood with all the pain I have, even if I forgive still hurts and this book helped me more than I thought it would be.

Obviously it's a 5/5

[Jessica Ducharme]

This book is full of raw emotion and dives right into those messy feelings we often bury and try to lock away forever. It makes you feel even though you’ve locked those feelings away for so long. I feel so understood reading these poems. It’s heartbreaking to know others feel this way as well but it’s very much worth the read.

[Lachlan]

I loved it with my whole heart…

Made me cry a lot, but I loved it so much. I am buying this book - ASAP. It was so relatable for me, I loved the writing prompts. I wrote so many notes next to the phrases. It’s a beautifully written poem book. Loved it-I hope to meet the author someday so I can have my book signed.

[Jen Chen]

Wow, I never thought this would be a book that I needed. However, I can’t say I wasn’t incredibly touched by just how much the poems related to what I had experienced in my childhood and how I can reflect on it now when I’m trying to break cycles. I hope that Divvi Mago can write something else like this cause I know these old wounds may resurface in the future as both us and our kids get older.

[Noemie]

Un véritable baume pour le coeur et pour l’âme ❤️‍🩹

Pas besoin d’être mère pour que certains de ces textes résonnent en soi...

C’est brut, honnête, vibrant, réel, triste et si beau à la fois 🥰

Ça fait mal tout en soulageant une partie blessée bien enfouie sous la surface, une bouffée libératrice 🤧

[Taitiana Alvarado]

Saw some of the authors passages on social media and fell in love with her poetry. My husband bought me her book and I couldn’t put it down. Dark and beautiful poetry for the soul,in remembrance of heart ache and detachment from a mother’s abuse. Recommend to anyone who has been hurt by their mother and wants to find closure.

[Brandi]

I loved the way this poetry book was written. I feel like one can really benefit from being given the space to work out their own feelings that these poems can evoke. I really liked that it had that introspection space for the reader. I really needed that honestly. Makes it a really immersive experience and cathartic read.

[Gabriela Jimenez]

This book has my heart. I can’t stress enough how this book was the book that I read all the way through. I really enjoyed and loved this book. I have problems with my own mother and I cried. Thank you.

[Victoria Gehman]

Heavy and validating, showing the reader they are not alone in this hurt. The journal prompts and questions throughout are helpful and add to the healing experience the reader can get from this book. I highly recommend!

[Golden Girl]

Easy read. Journal prompts are no e touch. Very pointed and honest. Great book for those suffering from parental trauma and trying to heal . Not too heavy but weighted enough to promote serious reflection and give hope for breaking the cycle.

[Kristen]

As a mother and someone who has experienced childhood trauma/trauma with their parents, the poetry in this book really resonated with me and made me feel seen and validated. Highly recommend for any parent, especially ones that have had difficult relationships with their parents.

[Ariel Morris]

Reluctantly skimmed the last quarter of the book because my ocd had to finish. Not poetry. Was nice to read some things that resonated with my narc bio mom experience… But these were like notes from her phone or journal. Nothing poetic about it.

[hyazinthsoul]

My mother only acknowledge me
when I did something to make her proud.

I could feel her eyes judging me across the room,
the pressure of being perfect.

It still aches my soul
that I had to peform to feel loved.