Silver Glitter Amongst Gold Braiding Poem by Margaret Alice

How shall I ever get along without Nici’s love?
The house turns into a mausoleum whenever
she’s not here, giving me a kiss when she passes
by, hugging me, giving me assurances of love

When she was small, I taught her we were born
to love each other, other people, animals and
plants – in short, the whole wide world; when
she goes off to visit a friend, or on a school

Excursion, the lights go out, silence descends,
I become morose in my isolation – then she
returns like a ray of sunlight, I can breathe
again, she hugs me tight and laughs

With silver glitter amongst gold braiding –
lighting up the house, and though I sometimes
refuse to smile with her, hugging my pain like
a precious jewel, she never allows her mom

To remain in the cold of dark outside, she
always pulls me back – the day she leaves the
house, I’ll cry continuously, for months on end,
her love is so important, I have found…