Category: Poems

Children Once Again

By Carla A. Romarate-Knipel

A rainy day in Woodbury, New Jersey

We were all young once

we skipped, we hopped, we danced

raced and ran

climbed trees, gazed at the sky,

wishing we could fly

and touch the stars.

Then we grew up, grew older

lost most of the awe and wonder

legs no longer strong and agile

our vision clouded, unable to see

beyond the haze of mortality’s doom.

Somewhere in between

the joy and the gloom –

a voice calls out an invitation

“Follow me…”

we hear a knocking

on the door of our hearts

the Lord of all Life

the Lord of the Dance

waiting to come in.

Anyone who opens the door

skipping, hopping, running

limping, shuffling, trudging

to let this Holy Guest in

will meet the Light of Lights,

who parts the clouds of doubt

to let the glory shine –

we become children once again

now and forevermore.

The First Time

I remember the first time you touched me.

my mind …

my heart …

my body …

my mind was like a landscape that you explored with deliberate, tender steps

seeking to behold another soul, waiting to know if I were the one or should you move on.

my heart was like a garden, on which you sowed seeds of your vulnerable, truthful self – transparent and transcendent

breaking open to let the slender, fragile shoots of your beautiful soul

blossom into a fiery, enduring love that rages beyond finite time and space.

my body was like a canvas lavished by the brush strokes of your deep desire

to know me – the vibrant colors and rich textures of sweet communion with your beloved.

All these touchings are now just memories I cherish

and longing for them to come alive again

in my dreams

in my striving

to keep you ever present

with me,

long after I finally decide to scatter your ashes over the ocean that once separated us, but now

has become an ever flowing reminder

that our love goes on and on …

– Carla A. Romarate-Knipel

7.19.23

(copyright 2023)

an ever flowing reminder that our love goes on and on…