Lacey

Standing in an empty room filled with only boxes,
Absentmindedly I pull the last toy down from the shelf.
Something so loved and used, left to gather dust.
Brushing off the dust I feel her soft fur,
A gentle reminder of all that is lost in time.
Hours, spent playing.
Days, spent pretending.
Weeks, spent looking, when she was lost.
Momentarily frozen and feeling isolated, but not alone.
I look into her eyes, and she looks back into mine.
Every problem insignificant.
Every issue unimportant.
Earthed by the reminiscence of a simpler time, I sigh with relief
Smiling with the thought of games I would play.
Worries and stress slowly replaced with memories of uninterrupted imagination.
Guilt floods through me as I am reluctant to place her with the others,
My hand hovering over two boxes.
I gently place her in the one marked 'keep'.