From My Heart to Your Heart
Poetry has given me a voice to express the many emotions I am feeling at a particular time. I grew up in the era when children were to be seen and not heard. Childhood was difficult for me because I loved to talk, but I was not allowed or encouraged to address my feelings, nor was I even asked what I thought. I was the youngest child of four for eight years but still the baby girl. By the eleventh year of my life, I was no longer the baby; I became the middle child. People can’t comprehend what that did to me, unless they have been there. I always enjoyed talking, which got me into trouble in school. I had lots of dolls, with which I was able to create my own world until I began to write short stories and then poetry.
I came to an understanding of God’s existence when I was about eight. I spent a lot of time talking to Him, especially when I was sad. I didn’t really get to know the true knowledge of Jesus Christ and salvation until I was twenty-five. Thirty-five years later, I can no longer contain the love, joy, and peace that abide on the inside. My recent poems, mixed with some of my earlier poems, are being poured out for all to share and be partakers of God’s grace and mercy. Allowing the Holy Spirit to direct and awaken in me emotions that I was unable to express has been a journey all its own as well as a true blessing.
I have always loved poetry; it has a way of saying things that are soothing to the heart of the hearers instead of harsh to what they hear with their natural ears. The journey begins on the inside with the key that unlocks what the heart has to say.
From My Heart to Your Heart 2
Matters of the Heart
I feel very blessed after writing my first book, From My Heart To Your Heart. I was extremely happy to have located many of the poems written over forty years ago. They are dated throughout this book. It is my desire to blend the old with the new. To my surprise many of the things addressed over forty years ago have come to pass. It is easy to see that some of the poems were before their time, and perhaps that is why they were hidden from me for such a time as this.
The message continues from the first book, delving a little deeper into the things we still struggle with throughout our lives. We are encouraged here to deal with matters of the heart so that we can be free from the many traps that the Enemy has set for us, causing us to fail in our relationships and fall short of the glory of God.
Excerpts
Reviews
FOREWORD Clarion Book Review
January 4, 2017
From My Heart to Your Heart is beautifully suited for those looking for a poetry collection with Christian leanings.
Alicia G. Smith-Mackall’s collection, From My Heart to Your Heart is a spiritual journey that moves between poems toward a place of peace and acceptance.
Throughout, Smith-Mackall sprinkles in touches of rhyme as well as narrative poems that lean toward the confessional. By utilizing transparency and accessible verses, she’s able to reach all audiences – not necessarily only those who are already fans of poetry. By revering the ideal that words are meant to be read, even in poetry, she’s able to transcend what’s often seen as a barrier in this genre: the ability to reach people without pretense.
From My Heart to Your Heart is beautifully suited for anyone looking for a collection with Christian leanings or seeking an uplifting inspirational, and motivational book.
KIRKUS Review
November 11, 2016
From My Heart to Your Heart 2: Matters of the Heart
Smith-Mackall’s second book of poetry continues to explore her faith and identity.
Like the author’s first collection, this one explores her relationships with faith and family. It also ventures down new avenues with themes of betrayal, broken promises, forgiveness and time, and the breadth of her subjects is impressive. Her faith buoys her throughout each of life’s challenges, yet her most successful poems are those that address issues of identity as something beyond faith. However, some verses from her first collection, such as “What is a Negro?” and “I am a Negro,” show more heart and social relevance than many of those here.
Smith-Mackall is a more natural songwriter than poet; some poems are explicitly labeled as songs and include choruses and rhymes that work. She also writes powerful prayers: “Lord, Thank You,” for example, is strong in its simplicity and earnestness, and doesn’t use rhyme as a crutch.
Fans of the previous collection will warm to this one’s subject matter.