Bella Shepard

Mamma\'s Winter Coat

 

When I was just a child of four

Or maybe it was three

I remember mamma’s winter coat

As clearly as can be

 

I always thought it funny

That she could wear it either way

One side was speckled tweed

And the other furry gray

 

It hung in folds around her calves

Voluminous in style

And as she’d twist and swirl

It would always make me smile

 

When she wore it in the snow

She looked just like a bear

Playing in the drifts with me

White flakes upon her hair

 

Although it was too big for me

I never could resist

To find a way to wrap inside

And so I would persist

 

I’d tip toe to the closet

Quietly open wide the door

Tug gently on at the coat

Until it tumbled to the floor

 

Then gather in my arms

The object of my delight

And hurry to the wing chair

No one knowing of my flight

 

I would open up the coat

And arrange it on the seat

Then climb up in the middle

My task was near complete

 

Now to pull each side around me

And block out all I feared

In this soft and furry cocoon

Until I disappeared

 

I wish I had that coat today

To wrap around me tight

To shield me from the pain of life

To block it from my sight

 

To be that little girl again

To hide in furry bliss

I dreamt the other night

I could feel my mamma’s kiss