Through Strength And Weakness

 I love the image you paint in the first stanza and I like these lines.. 

"as she imparted her wisdom to me over
boiling water and chopped garlic;"

and 

"but I never saw beneath her eyes
how she wore her pain as easily
as she wore her smile."

I think i get what you are saying in the last two lines (especially with the title of the poem) but for me I can't quite understand it.  Maybe I just need to get a cup of tea and read it again...

btw... its good to see you back here!