Sitting Next to Me

Sitting next to me,
as plain as can be,
not a care in the world,
is a little girl eating cotton candy.

She takes a bite,
savoring the flavor,
swinging her legs
on the wooden bench,
swaying her head along
to a tuneless tune,
just enjoying life.

And I get up and leave,
knowing what has been missing
from my life a chasm
ripped through a city,
caused by an earthquake of hate,
realizing how, this whole time,
Life was sitting next to me.