'Needle and thread'
"Because once you are Real you can't be ugly, except to people who don't understand." ― Margery Williams Bianco, The Velveteen Rabbit
"The Velveteen Rabbit," illustration by William Nicholson.
Daily Tribune"Because once you are Real you can't be ugly, except to people who don't understand." ― Margery Williams Bianco, The Velveteen Rabbit
"The Velveteen Rabbit," illustration by William Nicholson.
Sunlight streaming, the sound of my
Mother's laughter and the
Smell of cinnamon in the air.
I wait for epiphanies
At crossroads of fate —
When friends share stories
Together, like we have all the time;
When I receive applause;
Or the moment someone will finally
Call me
"Mine."
I sit with needle and thread,
Fixing up my old stuffed rabbit's seams.
Gazing at her glassy brown eyes,
And it just happens.
Not as a flash of light
Or the stopping of time.
As I brush her fur and make shushing noises,
As if cooing at a helpless bird.
The needle and thread then
Sit heavily in my hands.
I hold heavily the weight
Of a life well-lived,
Of a love well-worn.
That I had someone else hold
Needle and thread
For me?
But now I hold them in my hands,
And I swim in this sweet responsibility.
The old stuffed rabbit no longer
Calls me
By my name.
Instead, if you listen close enough,
You might hear her call me
A word that sounds suspiciously
Like a prayer.