"Madam I will be right back!” he mouthed as he walked by, establishing eye-contact when I looked up. He was dressed in a blue uniform with his baton hanging from his belt. I assumed he was as one of the security men who patrolled Coconut Grove’s beachfront. Confused I nodded figuring he feared for my … Continue reading Personal Space? What’s That?
Confession
For four months they had been close like brother and sister, almost inseparable. For the last month after she announced that she would be transferring to another branch, Jojo had taken the opportunity to profess his love for her, adding the disclaimer that this meant no pressure whatsoever. Afia reciprocated his profession but never mentioned … Continue reading Confession
My 2 weeks in a Multi-Needs Classroom
I have been working a 7-4 job after almost 4 months of fulltime in-home care-giving. Let’s just say going out into the world was a breath of fresh air but I was unprepared for sleeping and waking on a schedule.Three weeks ago I was asked to take on a 2-week contract teaching position at a … Continue reading My 2 weeks in a Multi-Needs Classroom
Ode to Audre
I found you while searching for books by other Black women, other immigrant women, other writing women, other queer women. I didn’t know of you before then. Perhaps I wasn’t supposed to know because I wasn’t ready. back then, I was scared of queerness, skittish about writing, deathly afraid of Blackness, ashamed of claiming my … Continue reading Ode to Audre
The Funk Has Rolled In
I calm down and forget to chase the processing/I settle for sitting beside her hand-in-hand/knowing this is not easy for either of us/I reach to hug her with the other hand/knowing the weight of my illness/is on her heart/knowing she herself is seeking support for her own demons/seeking support from a sinking ship