Creative Writing Contest Winner: Sarah Johnson

My name is Sarah Johnson and I am a sophomore here at CMU. I am studying special education and am a Language Arts minor (I had to incorporate my love for writing in somewhere). I enjoy getting to know different people and often write about the issues that are hard to talk about. I have a lot of passion when I write, and I usually convey the feelings that I find hard to express out loud. I mainly write poetry, up until now I have been a closet poet, this is my first time I have entered my writing in anything.  I am hoping that my writing can relate to just one person, if I have done that then I have done my “job” so to speak. I hope to keep on writing in the future and use my experiences to help other people.

Sometimes

Sometimes I wish I was a little kid again,
skinned knees are easier to fix than broken hearts.

Mommy would wash my knee with tender loving care
and put a bandage on my gaping wound.
And Daddy, would make me try again until I skinned my other knee.
—-
Sometimes I wish I was a little kid again
when childhood romance was all that was allowed
and little valentines on the 14th.

Sometimes I wish I was a little kid again
to have him scoop me up in his lap
and read me the story that I knew by heart
and so did he.

Sometimes I wish I was a little kid again
and days with mommy were all I had
and daddy would come home for dinner
and say “Hi Dear, I am home”
Give her a kiss.

then I would run to him
and he would actually care what I did that day.

Sometimes I wish I were a little kid again,
where I would tuck in my dollies
and pretend I was a mommy,
and protect my animals from the scary dark shadows
cascading on the wall
and scaring us both.

Sometimes I wish I were a little kid again
learning in Sunday school and making crafts and
jumping rope and drinking red punch
with my new friends.

Sometimes I wish I could color while singing out of tune
at the top of my lungs and listen to Adventures in Odyssey
at night with daddy.
He would always be there if I was scared from the stories.

Sometimes I wish I were a little kid again
playing make believe with David
Vet and Store and Dentist

Sometimes I wish I could do it all over again
because as an adult
it seems much too complicated