The Heart of a Child
I think perhaps
The heart of a child really is
Heart shaped...
Like those on valentine cards,
Delicate and soft with seed pearls
dainty lace and fancy glittered
Ribbons, spilling over like happiness.
Yes, heart shaped,
You can tell by the sound of their
Laughter and of course by the was
They smile...
Babies coo the sweetest sounds and
We respond with silly conversations.
There is joy in the heart of a child when
They look at you...
Our voices comfort them as we lull them
To sleep, so lovingly we rock them to
Dream land, fast to sleep and ask the Lord
Their souls to keep...
Words from a song someone sang to us so
Long ago...'Hush Little Baby Don't Say
A Word'...'Lullaby And Good Night' and
More often than not, a self styled lullaby.
Suddenly they discover they have toes and
Fingers...
We love the way these strong little fingers
Pull at our hair and glasses and grab and twist
Our lips and scratch our faces...Ah, but we don't care.
Soon they are crawling and scampering across
The floor on all fours, then struggling to sit up
With backs stronger than we remember baby's
Backs should be at seven months.
Oops! Down they tumble and fall and tumble
As they discover this something called standing.
We offer fingers and hands to steady them as
they wobble...
Then almost before we know it, they rush to us
With those little out stretched arms.
They stagger on tip toes and take those first steps
To independence.
They have a look of amazement that says, 'I did it!' and
We reward them with applauds and kisses.
We grin and make telephone calls in celebration!
Our wonderful, beautiful babies know without a doubt
They now rule in this palace, this place, this home.
As babies grow we rarely miss a chance to brag to
Family, friends and neighbors, and often strangers
About the wonder and special qualities of our precious child.
Yes, the heart of a child is heart shaped like those
They draw with pictures of us in the middle...
Heart shaped by an intergenerational connection of family,
neighbors, friends and even that stranger that says
'Your baby is soooo adorable...
Babies give to us the breath of happiness,
Filling our heart with untold joy...
Now and forever!
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