inside me lives a restless child
taller than her mother, daydreams bright afternoons of hide and seek
as she pares fruits and salts the soup-
she runs carefree as daffodils
a restless child inside me, she
curls like a spring bud reading books,
writing notes of rebellion and
thinks about flying into space
as she cleans the dirty dishes -
inside me lives this child, woman
of wrinkles and blue tattooed lines -
she has traveled many roads, now
smaller than her children, she (still) dreams
of painting sunsets, catching storms-
restless- this woman is (still) a child -
Posted for: D'verse Poets Pub - Poetics of growing up ~ Thanks to Stu Mcpherson ~
Poetry form: Quartern - written in 4 quatrains with a refrain in each successive stanza.
Inspiration: Brazilian poet , Ana Lins dos Guimarães Peixoto, Cora Coralina: All lives -
Yes, I think we each carry with us the child we once were; and are still that child in many ways. As long as we can dream...........
ReplyDeleteI believe that Mary ~ Thanks for the visit ~
Deletethinking about flying into space while cleaning the dirty dishes...i like...it's good to feel that this child inside is still alive..
ReplyDeleteThank you Claudia ~
Deletesmiles...beautiful....love he subtle transitions....taller than her mom then the smaller than her kids....ther eis def still a child in there...and in me as well..a part of us that will never grow up....smiles...keep dreaming, keep painting....
ReplyDeleteIt's a challenge to keep it alive ~ Thank you Brian ~
DeleteAnd that is something you and all should hold on to, as being a child is sure fun, even if we have to be a responsible one and do the dishes haha
ReplyDeleteIt sure is Pat ~ Thanks for the visit ~
DeleteGrace- the quatern works perfectly here, like an echo of your dreams.
ReplyDeleteThank you Laurie ~ The form was fun to do ~
DeleteWe all get those moments where something wake the child within in and nothing can keep that energy from seeping out. I loved this!
ReplyDeleteThank you Gretchen ~
DeleteLovely, I always wanted to be a rockstar as I cleaned the dirty dishes... this one made me smile and brought back my own memories... glad you still carry the child within. Thank you thoroughly eenjoyed.
ReplyDeleteI daydream doing chores ~ Thanks Di ~
DeleteThis is perfect!
ReplyDeleteThank you Natasha ~
Deleteawesome form...and an awesome poem!....without that child inside us, i genuinely believe we die. In fact, I think for those people who DO lose it, or let it sleep anyway, walk the earth in limbo...its pretty clear to see, I've met a few of them!...some beautiful lines in this Grace
ReplyDeleteI think its important for the child to live within us ~ Thank you Stu for the wonderful prompt ~
DeleteGreat work ! Both the text and image. Wearing some ink meself, certainly moving. Please have a good Sunday.
ReplyDeleteHave a good Sunday too Robert ~
DeleteReally beautiful piece Grace. And I relate. Great work. Love the new header on your blog--nice shot :)
ReplyDeleteThanks Jennifer ~ Thought I will use my own picture for the header ~
DeleteOh, beautifully said and I agree--we are all still children inside.
ReplyDeleteThank you Susan ~
DeleteOh I love this and can very much relate. I really connected with your description 'there is a child inside, who is taller than her mother' which for me had an Alice in Wonderland feel. Your inner child squashed inside of you but outgrowing you every day and trying to find a way to stretch her limbs and be released! Great.
ReplyDeleteI love your interpretation ~ Thank you dear ~
DeleteYes, I think we all have an inner child, bound in chains in some basement somewhere, afraid that if we let it out we will be considered foolish. Or worse. Let it out, I say. Thank you. Your poem was a sweet start to my day.
ReplyDeleteI know, foolish and carefree ~ Thanks JCN ~
DeleteI agree, we have to hang on to our inner child because that is where we first discovered love and laughter. I loved this, Grace, just beautiful. Have a wonderful weekend.
ReplyDeleteThank you for the lovely thoughts Elsie ~ Have a wonderful weekend too ~
Deleteall the little old ladies and gentlemen we see must all have a child in them..that can't get out, but it's enough to keep them going ..memories..
ReplyDeleteOwWooo!!! Golly, beautiful, every staaaage of the way. The form is a good choice for this lifelong relationship the narrator has with herself.
ReplyDelete...forever young at heart, Grace... perhaps, that might be the very secret to perpetual happiness...to live forever young at heart... I'm afraid i can't joim the pub today...i'm bound to meeting my deadlines in finishing taxes...then i'll be drafting finacial statements... I am working as a corporate accountant that's why it's already given to have unending number works...aww...blessed sunday to you...smiles...
ReplyDeleteBeautiful ... the child lives within us always :-)
ReplyDeleteHow lost that child can be until we remember. Well done.
ReplyDeleteI like the recurring child in every verse. You build different perspectives on the theme, and there is a quiet integrity to the whole.
ReplyDeleteVery evocative and so true. The child inhabits us forever.
ReplyDeleteit is a strange thing feeling grey and small at the same time. great poem.
ReplyDeleteNice to honor the child within us. I like how you express this. I also like the inspiration of your poem I love hearing about women who publish in old age. It gives me hope.
ReplyDeleteshe has traveled many roads, that says it all
ReplyDeleteOh goodness this is quite amazing. I also love the choice of picture.
ReplyDeleteI SO feel this!
ReplyDeleteLovely. I agree that it's important to keep your inner child alive :-)
ReplyDeleteSo yes! What excellent details of daily life, and your repetition and reversals work so well. Great form to contain your message.
ReplyDeleteAging is actually being a child again.
ReplyDeleteIf only, the kids that the person had, understood it.
One thing is to feel the child inside you, and another thing is to be it. I enjoyed your poem. It is like you say: despite anything, I am a child. May everyone want to identify, being children not by play but by faith in God.
ReplyDeleteGod give you a nice week!
Such an effective treatment, alternating between the two portrait of the child inside, and the older woman. It underlines the contrasts and similarities so well. I love the way you've formed these subtle thoughts in quatrains.
ReplyDeleteLove this poem and its form. I, too, occasionally feel like the child I once was and maybe could still be,,,
ReplyDeleteWe all feel like that - I remember my grandma, in her 90's doing a sashay across the room to a dance tune, smiling. In that moment, I could SEE the young girl still inside her. Great write! Loved it.
ReplyDeleteI think the child lives inside us until the day we die.
ReplyDeleteWONDERFUL !!!
ReplyDeletereally like this. There's a beautiful contrast of image and reflection here. The mundane task of chores paired with the dreams, so creatively spun. Excellent. Thanks
ReplyDeleteBeautiful...there is the child in me that will forever stay no matter my age. She has been wounded and bears scars, but joy has been my healer.
ReplyDeleteYou just take great care of that child there, you have a treasure to be sure! Great write.
ReplyDeleteThere needs to be something of the child we were in each of us; that sense of wonder at discovering new delights of all kinds, that need to be playful and even, at times, a bit rebellious. It's such a shame that so much effort is made by so many to smother the inner child - and such a relief that he/she simply refuses to die.
ReplyDeleteBeautiful! It's good to always remember that part of us.
ReplyDeleteForever young, the child remains in the adult. Beautiful language and flow.
ReplyDelete