As a child she was sure
they would taste just like cotton candy.

If she could reach out
and touch one,
it would feel like the plush stuffing of her teddy bear.

She was certain
they were created for her amusement,
for long car rides.

Bunnies and kittens
pure, soft, and white
made their way across her sky.

But as she got older
the shapes were less defined.
They were nothing
but big white puffs of water vapor.

Her bunnies vanished,
replaced by soft white shoulders
that held the weight of the world,
trying too hard to keep it together.
Trying to hold all of the world’s pain
in two soft white hands.
Concealing every last droplet of emotion
with a cotton candy exterior.

But sometimes it’s just too cold
the pressure just too strong.

Now when she cries,
The clouds cry with her.