"The Lonely Shard."
She took her laptop into bed to look at baby animals
so that the pattern was hard world, soft bed, hard computer,
soft baby animals.
What's inside after that was hard to tell
because the telescoping stopped.
She looked at baby polar bears first
because that's what got it started,
was feeling herself floating away from the melting iceberg
mainland on her lonely shard.
She moved on to puppies, a particular breed
she'd had as a child that her parents had gotten rid of when
they moved, the dog floating deeper
into her past with every moment she remained alive.
Her carpet was endless, but the animals
were all so good and wronged that she
started feeling better.
But just as she started feeling better,
a sick feeling seeped in to cover the inside of her stomach
like fur.
Just keep looking at them, she told herself.
It's good for you no matter why.
What would her male counterpart be doing?
Looking at trucks?
What would her destitute counterpart be doing?
Counting stars?
What would her animal counterpart be doing?
Breathing, breathing, breathing.