Inspiration (Page 2)

Black, plastic letters spelling out "ASK MY PRONOUNS" on a reusable, wood-framed square sign, nestled on a wrinkled rainbow PRIDE flag.

I hope you will join me in this act of solidarity as I stand up for those who are being forced to assimilate with a societal construct that does not fit them or reflect their lived experience.

(377 words)

[continue]. . .

A young girl, wearing jeans, a red shirt, tall boots, a winter hat with a pom-pom, and a black backpack, walks along a grass-covered ridge near a river at sunset.

Some of my ancestors crossed an ocean to live in a land they had never seen. Some lived out their entire lives in one place, never venturing outside of their village, never seeing an ocean.

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A golden background highlights a dandelion field at sunset. In the foreground, a dandelion releases its seeds to float on the wind. Two immature dandelion buds are unfocused but visible behind it.

What if words were free to fly, untamed by the pages that held them? What if they had a life of their own and were allowed free expression without constraint, without intentionality?

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A man preparing to drive a white, painted finishing nail into a board with a hammer while his left hand supports the nail. A ladder, shop benches and tools are visible in the background.

In 1984, I decided to pierce my left ear. I did it myself with a bag of ice, a sterilized needle, and a bar of soap.

(492 words)

[read]
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A close-up photo of the right side of the front of a redheaded caucasian woman's face with her eye closed, blinking.

An hour lasts forever. A lifetime’s just a blink. The time it takes to get there is never what you think.

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A shattered shop window shows signs of an attempted burglary.

The bullies carried baseball bats wrapped in chain and tape. Now they use both laws and lies to hit us with their hate.

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A cool-toned photo of human arms, with chains wrapped around their wrists, hands raised above a crowd. The chain between their wrists is breaking, expressing the message of gained freedom through fight.

Liberty is having agency over one’s own destiny and decisions. Liberty cannot truly exist without the ability to govern what happens to and with one’s own body.

[continue]. . .