Bears in the Closet

They are just Teddy bears, two of them, old and worn, outgrown and neglected. The ears are chewed. The stuffing on one seeps out at the seams. She takes them from the closet and dusts them off. She displays them on the shelves, among the books he used to read, the toys he played with, and the detritus of his boyhood. There’s no tragedy here. He’s still alive. And he’s not a neglectful son, or an ungrateful one. But when she saw the bears they reminded her again that she still mourns him—the boy who was so fleetingly hers.

Inspired by What Good Can Come. Illustration by Nancy.