Dear Human,
My eyes, once bright like shiny new pennies,
aglow with the promise of laughter and playtime,
have dulled in the wake of dust and forgotten memories
binding my wavering faith like manacles,
pinning me- helpless- to your shelf.
Unable to move,
wistfully waiting for the return of 
times when velveteen rabbits were love-worn,
when teddy bears were held close at night…
a time when you needed me for every car ride,
every sleepover.
My fur, once soft and sleek
from the stokes of your adoring fingertips,
tender kisses, constant love,
has become matted and stiff-
raked through by Time’s cruel fingers
and by your stunning apathy
towards me… towards every one of us
you once loved so dearly!
I remember when your cheeks were rosy,
when your eyes were laughter-bright.
When your hands painted miracles,
everyday we would play
and the world sparkled
with the promise of being
exactly the way we wanted.
I wouldn’t mind being so ragged
if I had been loved to pieces
instead of forgotten and discarded:
Buttons sewn on too many times;
Patches falling apart;
Stuffing leaking from my dangling neck;
My permanent smile unravelled into thread;
I wouldn’t mind being so ragged
if I were still tenderly loved
(and not having become
a figment of your imagination,
a long-forgotten piece
of an ever-so faint past.)
I long for you to cradle my dying body.
This old, tired stuffed animal
wants you to hold him again
and whisper with words of fairy dust.
With satin-sheen-gold remembrance,
breathe out moments and memories;
comfort me as I pass.
Give me reason to hope.
Give me reason to hold on to
a time when we were inseparable.
A time when I was real.
With love (no matter what),
your teddy
