The Child Inside Myself

There is a child that lives inside all of us.

You know, the one that longs to go out and revel in nature’s fields of dreams 

The one that was told that children should be seen but not heard

The tiny tot who keeps it tucked out of sight, out of mind

Who sits alone among the tiny pebbles washed up along the shore

The sand beneath the feet of my childhood 

Too afraid of what others might say

But down inside my grownup self

Lives the child that used to be:

happy

secure

innocent

and seeking God

Sometimes, I rise from my hiding place and write poetry

Yet, still so fragile but so far from innocent

I need to be stronger to protect the damaged child within me 

I long to listen to the sermon once spoken among the sparrows 

Cliff Barrows, Ethel Waters, and George Beverly Shea  

And find God in simplicity

There among the rocks, the forlorn and thorn 

You are still the perfect present used to have

The most significant present in Santa’s bag

The sweetest candy I dare 

No doubt, the prettiest person the world has ever seen

That’s who you are to me

The biggest, most precious diamond that can never be destroyed

As I stand on the edge of my destiny

I look out to nothing more to come

Yet, everything that has passed

Makes me wonder, hope, and pray 

That someday I can be born again and become that child once more

As long as I live, I will listen to what the in me has to say

Maybe to bring back my childhood 

To leave the door open to bring back the joys I once had 

To walk those snow-covered sidewalks in my hometown

Along the streets that will lead me to the front steps of the houses I grew up in

The fields full of purple expectations where I often lie craving pure spiritual milk and honey

To seek comfort for my soul

Blessings, my children, with hopes that the timeless healing power of God’s love can reach your inner child to bring the wholeness and freedom we all long for.