Gabriel

I can't remember the first time it dawned on me that I needed him.

Maybe it was when I saw him on the subway,

Or when he gave me an excuse to not be arrested.

Or the time when he appeared to me at a time of grief, how he lent me his smile, his joy, his love.

But I think it was everything. Every drop of hope, every glimpse of happiness, of freedom. He was like that one small ship that came out to meet me in a stormy sea. My anchor. My nightlight. My special stuffed elephant. He brought me back and this is my story.