The beauty of a true poet is the ability to take the inexpressible and give it tangible form and substance to elicit an emotional reaction, and for someone who is seeking a gift for someone that has everything, no one else can provide such an experience as Long Island’s Kathleen Cella of The Gifted Rhyme.
Previously, Kathleen had worked in the business field for 28 years, holding an executive position in the data and analytics field; after a long-standing career at her company, she reached a crossroads in life. Should she continue in the rat race or set about on a bold new path in search of something far more fulfilling? Ultimately, she went with the latter choice and set her sights on pursuing her passion of writing poetry. Her skill as a professional poet offers her unique and emotional prose for people seeking a different and poignant type of present for their loved ones.
Kathleen said she had always loved writing but had never pursued it seriously until her parents’ 50th wedding anniversary in 2013.
“I really had no idea what to get them, so I composed the first poem I ever truly wrote where I summarized the story of their life,” she said. “I wanted it to hit on every emotion so I wrote a heartfelt story that also incorporated humor, put a wedding picture in the poem and presented a framed version at their anniversary dinner. I read it to my parents, and by the end my parents were laughing, crying, and to this day they still have it hanging on their wall.”
Kathleen said that she loves composing poems and expressing herself, and that the genuinely emotional reaction that she elicited from her parents made her realize that she had a genuine knack with the written word.
Kathleen displaying some of her wares at a bridal expo.
In the subsequent years, word started to spread about her skill as a wordsmith, and people began approaching her, more than willing to pay her to compose poems for their loved ones as well. Positive word-of-mouth fueled by the genuinely emotional reactions to her work generated more and more clients, and finally this year she decided to set out from the corporate world and into the realm of full-time writing.
“People knew I had this talent, and at this point I was writing for my family and friends whenever they had a special occasion and before I knew it, I was writing all the time,” she said. “Whenever I would give these poems to my friends and loved ones, there wouldn’t be a dry eye in the house. And finally, I reached a pivotal point where I decided that I really wanted to see where I could go with this. I leveraged the decades of business experience I had and decided to launch a website, attend several bridal expos and began to network and build a social media presence.”
While initially focusing on the bridal market, Kathleen’s skills can be applied towards any occasion, including weddings, anniversaries, birthdays, baby showers, birth announcements, memorials, holidays, graduations, teacher gifts, team sport recognition and just about any other event where one would want to capture a snapshot of an emotional moment in time with a written memento penned by a skillful and empathic scribe.
So far, the response has been overwhelmingly positive, with Kathleen’s following continuing to grow as more and more people are exposed to her work. Her approach to poetry involves having a personal one-on-one conversation with her client, gathering as much information about the subject matter at hand as possible so she can craft a truly in-depth and sensitive take on the material in question. It is an extremely easy process for her client’s as she does all the work crafting a beautiful story that will be cherished for years to come.
The testimonials she has received thus far in response to her work have been overwhelmingly supportive, with Kathleen displaying a genuine ability to dredge out the deepest and most genuine emotions from her clients when presenting them with her work, displaying and almost uncanny ability to express things that ordinarily would be inexpressible.
Kathleen with her mother-in-law Mary Lou Cella at a bridal expo.
“One of my first clients reached out to me after I delivered the first pass of a poem for her daughter’s birthday to her. The client’s daughter had overcome many challenges in her life and her mom wanted to convey how proud she was of the strong and independent woman she had become. Within minutes of receiving the poem, she called me in tears,” Kathleen said. “She told me, ‘You were born to do this.’ My approach is taking the content people provide to me and just creating the story of their life in an artful way. I always make sure I include personal information, small little emotional details. And incorporating all those little elements is what makes it truly special.”
Once Kathleen has her initial consultation with a client, turnaround time for the first draft of a poem is approximately one week. The client then gets up to three rounds of edits before the final copy is ultimately delivered to ensure that the poem meets their expectations. The addition of pictures into the poem make it all the more special for the recipient. She offers digital delivery of her poems that can be framed by her clients or used to create unique gifts such as canvas prints, blankets, plaque’s and more. She also offers framed and gift boxing for those clients who want to receive a poem that is ready to give which makes it an extremely easy process.
“Basically, this is the gift for someone that has everything,” Kathleen said. “It is the perfect gift for any occasion, especially for people who have everything that they already need. This is a special, heartfelt, and sentimental, the type of gift that is displayed on a wall, and you’ll always remember it. It’s a way to give something that’s very different and unique.”
Firmly establishing yourself in one employment field for years and making the bold decision to set out in a completely different direction to embrace a newfound passion – and making an earnest go at making it your new full-time career – can be a harrowing decision for anyone to make. However, Kathleen has embraced this unique opportunity, and is determined to share her heartfelt ability to craft the stories of her clients into unforgettable prose that is guaranteed to tug on the heartstrings of all who read it.
“The opportunity to be able to do this for people is exciting, energizing, satisfying, but a little scary as well,” she said. “Going from a very successful business career to this is a lifestyle change, but my husband and family members have been extremely supportive, and I really appreciate that. My parents are my biggest fans and my mother-in-law attended the latest bridal expo with me. I also recently learned that my grandfather had a knack for this as he wrote a poem for my aunt Eileen back in 1940. He wrote in beautiful stencil, framed it and presented it to my aunt. I get chills thinking about this and took this as a true sign that this is my calling.”
Kathleen’s poem for her parents’ 50th wedding anniversary.
“I previously was an executive leader with a lot of responsibilities, but now I’m actually working even more than I did before to make this new business a success,” Kathleen added. “I’m a very creative person and getting to finally express that and make a living from it is very fulfilling.”
To find out more about The Gifted Rhyme, please call 631-804-6466, or email [email protected], or visit their website at www.thegiftedrhyme.com, and follow their social media pages on Instagram and Facebook.
