Inner Voyage To Finding The Child Poem by Richard Wlodarski

Sitting at the end of a long dark corridor
A child paralyzed with fear cries
Yet another child from a broken family
A victim of physical and sexual abuse
Helpless unable to move or to speak
Programmed for self-destruction and alienation
Memory tape reads: Good-for-nothing
Now and forever
Child aging in prolonged negativity
No feeling no emotion no love
Starving for love and attention

The childish adult lashes out in anger
Life behind prison walls is bleak
But in cold darkness there is always light
This new adult now looks inward for guidance
And to his amazement finds there a wonderful person
A childlike adult who is capable of love and being loved
A childlike adult who has found a new spirituality
A little adult with a child's sense of wonder and curiosity
Open and receptive to new ideas and thoughts
Capable of truly experiencing his feelings
And in so doing moving further ahead
The child in this new adult nourishes him
He feeds him positive thoughts and feelings
He gives him new insights every single day
The child being innocent and free of constricting thoughts
Opens up a new world to the adult
He enables the adult to shed himself of his shackles
And to regain his much deserved freedom

Memory tape now reads:
Live-laugh-love