Dear Citizens of the World
Dear Citizens of the World
Dear Citizens of the World, there are so many issues, every direction you look, every person you talk to, they have their issue, animal abuse or cancer or fair treatment of farm workers. In our world today, so many of us have the privilege of being concerned about something other than our direct safety, which leaves us a whole lot to worry about, but I worry about climate change. That’s why I can’t fall asleep at night, why I’ve barely bought new clothes in months, it’s why I use less hair product. These are good things, right? It’s good that I’m not buying more and using more. What’s not good is why. The melting Arctic and Antarctic ice, the deforestation in the Amazon, the tropical storms. I care about that, but even more, I care about the flooding that is happening outside my window as I write this.
I care about the fact that it’s going to be our second holiday season in a row with more mud than snow. I care that the supposed hundred-year-flooding has happened three times since I’ve been born. You should care too. It’s not going to stop until everyone starts caring. Starts seeing things not as blips in the weather but as a problem. A world-wide problem. We can’t have twice yearly flooding that sends us home from school and puts out businesses for months. We can’t have rising ocean levels. We can’t have farmland that hurts the environment to feed people who want cheaper meat all the time. And we can’t have twelve year olds that can’t sleep at night because they feel like it’s their fault. We all need to listen, to watch, and then to do something. If we all do our best, then things can stop getting worse. They might even get better. We need to start caring, though. Right now.
The Voice
January 2024
January Is an Icicle
The clock was frozen in amber, but now frost creeps up to crack the warm glow. The minute hand trembles, then moves in wistful whirls. The Christmas tree slumps, its shiny tears clinking against the w...
The You That You Are
I love the you that you are when you are alone, The you that you are when you’re at home, When you look with soft eyes at the cat, The you that you are when you step onto the doormat. I love the you ...
Turning pages
i find it so easy to turn a page there’s something hopeful in it something promising something that holds my hand and reassures me that the narrative continues that the story is seamless but it has co...
The Heart of a Table
The ancient wooden table.The dining room table my family gathered at tonight to enjoy a meal together. But before my first bite of chicken reaches my mouth, I hear my mom tell my dad:I need a new dinn...
The Blizzard
I hardly knew her at all, wasn’t expected to. She was just a kid at the High like anyone else, who had no car. She was sitting stubbornly on a bench, determined to get a ride. I knew what it was like ...
Nighttime
Nighttime: My eyes drooping.The night sky, black as paint.The nocturnal still venture out in these ungodly hours. No sunlight or moonlight to guide us home. Just the cars in front of us, fleeing like...
Run With The Hunted
It wasn’t intended to be anything more than a brief stroll along the forest's edge. She was never meant to stray from the cover of the treeline, but the city calls to her, as it tends to do. When face...
Dear Citizens of the World
Dear Citizens of the World, there are so many issues, every direction you look, every person you talk to, they have their issue, animal abuse or cancer or fair treatment of farm workers. In our world ...
And So I Refrain
she talks to me about the paper snowflakes she plans to make this weekend, and so i refrain from telling her that my bedroom has been decorated since the day after thanksgiving. she tells me about the...
Love Me Like Fog
love me like the fog –like the fog loves december –for the winter gets blurry and it's hard to remember hold me like the fog – like the fog holds the town – although i may not see you let me know you...
A Dream
The ocean pulls forward and back in a rhythmic motion, lying beneath a spectacular sunset. We marvel at the sight of the setting sun, leaving traces of pink and gold along the clouds, tracing its pain...
Pizza Delivery!
Fourteen miles to 432 Carolina Street, that was the only thing standing between Joseph Palmer and free pizza. It was also the only thing standing between me and a stern talking to by my boss. The task...
Soul-ly There
The moment I open the door, the brisk fall air greets me. I step into the aromas of nature. I recall the deep smell of pines in the winter.The peaceful awakening of rain and life in spring.The overwhe...
I Open My Eyes
I open my eyes, Seeing a barely knit community, Everyone ignoring those who they pass, Going only to those they relate to, Searching only for the great, Noticeable similarities. I open my eyes, Seein...
A Letter I Can't Send
oh darling, you'll never understand why i did what i did. I don't think i ever will either. i held on as long as i could. i would've held on longer, if i could stand lying to you. but i can't force my...
Past and Future
The world is full of problems. It made the man wonder why he bothered to get up in the morning. The sun was shining — but it was too bright. And was it possible for that baby across the street to wail...
As She Pleases
To be a woman is to be a banquet. Eclectic, savory, distinguished. A summer potluck of femininity; a Thanksgiving toast to masculinity; an Easter brunch with androgyny. It is to be the cow; the milk, ...
I Love
I love the way the light filters through treesand how the ocean sounds at nightand my feet sinking into the earthand bird song at sunriseand how my name sounds on your breathand my fingers dancing on ...