“Quiet.

Quiet.

Storm brewing, sky darkening, air is heavy, go inside. Stay inside. Close your windows.

I heard they are trying to quell, trying to squash

Squash the sounds of

Stomping. Running. Jumping. Walking with a cane. Cycling. Sliding. Jump-roping. Speed-walking. Chair-wheeling. Skipping.

Movement

Too fast / too slow / too much / too loud / too quiet

TOO… Too… too… 

Too much change / too much new / too much XX chromosome / too much resistance / too much “what are you?” / too much “hmmm” / too much “I can’t quite tell” /  too much wet / too much glitter / too much color / too much NO / too much OH / too much ooooooohhhhhh

Feels like. Sounds like.

Running. Skipping. Flying. Swimming. Diving. Dancing. Twerking. Stilt-walking. Catapulting. Tip-toeing. Twirling. Kayaking. Racing.

At first – it’s far, at first – it’s quiet, at first it’s footprints, at first it’s echoes, at first it’s whispers, at first it’s messages written quickly, at first it’s long Skype calls that never seem to end, at first it’s loud bursts of laughter in a crowded cinema. At first – it’s practice.

And then bursts and spurts AND  squirts, and ARMOR. There’s armor. We’ve got armor. Glorious armor.

Umbrellas. Fast bikes. Dykes on bikes. Scarves. Data – lots of data, plenty, plenty data. Wit. Quick fingers. Effective fingers.  Codes. Disruption. Claiming my time. Reclaiming my time. First aid kits. Extra bags in your bag, (just in case). An extra pagne (wrapper ), (just in case). Unlimited data on your phone. Running shoes. Waterproof suitcases. And, plastic bags to cover your hair when it’s raining outside.

Call your cousins. Tweet your people. Tell them It’s on.”