I creep into the room to check on Claire.
The door squeaks.
Through the dim light, I see her eyes open. She looks at me
without lifting her head.
“Mama," she says and smiles. Her eyes close again.
I feel fixed to my spot by the weight of my full heart.
A love this abiding. The sun around which a planet
spins. For each of us.
For Claire and me.
