Remembering Pulse

 

Pulse 5 Years Later (A poem with 49 lines)

5 years since 

49 lives 

Were taken 

Way too soon

5 years since

 My community 

My people

My siblings

Were attacked 

On a scale 

That was hard

To wrap our minds around

Though it was 

Not the first 

Nor the last time

Such an attack 

Occurred

We will read 

Out the names

And remember

The lives

Behind the names

Always remember

All those who died that day

The peace of mind 

That was destroyed

All those who lost people

They cared about

Because some people 

Feel they must

Kill Love, 

Kill those who Love,

 Kill Love

We will remember

When our beloved trans siblings are killed

When others try to make 

Living and Loving Illegal

When ever someone dies

Because of broken systems 

And institutions

That are not created 

For the full flourishing

Of everyone who Loves

We will Live

We will dance

We will sing out in Pride

We will remember

Always

Always!!!

6/12/20 Pulse: 4 Years Later

Pulse was a shooting which hit me hard

It was my people who were killed in a mass

In a place consider Holy

I walked by similar Holy places every day

Walked by, To and from work

Pulse reminded me of my own privilege

As a cis-gendered asexual white woman

The privilege of unknowing

So few people know what Asexual is

No one can identify us Aces at 20 paces

Pulse was a reminder

No matter what progress we had made

There was still

Uncertainty, Pain, and Even Death

And these are still just as true 

We currently are in a moment

When we are acknowledging

Some of the white supremacist roots of our institutions

#BlackLivesMatter, #BlackTransLivesMatter, #BlackQueerBodiesMatter

But these lives continue to be killed in a mass too

This world is still filled with

Homophobia, Transphobia, Racism

In messages, we all see every day

From political and cultural leaders

Telling us all that we are not worthy

But we are Beloved and Loved

But we are Brave and Justice Seekers

But we all are worthy

#BlackLivesMatter, #BlackTransLivesMatter, #BlackQueerBodiesMatter

So go forth: Protest, March, Dance, and above all LOVE

Too many systems are broken

Too many communities torn apart

Too many family members lost

So, mourn and cry and scream

And then create New Systems 

That Celebrate BIPOC

That Celebrate Trans Women and Trans Men 

And Gender Queer People

Create New Systems

Filled with intersectional awareness

Intersectional belovedness

6/12/17

One Year Since Pulse 

I have lived through many tragedies through the years

But Pulse hit me harder than most

Shattering my heart in different ways

One Year Since Pulse 

 

One Year Since Pulse 

An attack on my people, my family

A reminder of my own privilege

A search for identity begun on a wave of tears

One Year Since Pulse 

One Year Since Pulse 

365 days, 49 who remain not here

A wound which is still raw if probed 

My Identity still being sought in all its forms

One Year Since Pulse 

One Year Since Pulse 

Today I remember what happened that day

Today I light a candle and listen to the names*

Today I donate and support my people

One Year Since Pulse 

One Year Since Pulse 

Today I Shed Tears and remember 

“Love is Love is Love is Love”+ 

Today I Shed Tears and remember 

“Love Make The World Go Round”++

Today I Shed Tears and remember 

“What we got is love even when the sinners hate us

We cannot let 'em diminish or intimidate us

We sing out, we got the rhythm and the truth on our side

We cut through the divide and we do it with pride”+

One Year Since Pulse 

One Year Since Pulse

One Year Since Pulse

*http://www.cnn.com/videos/us/2016/06/14/anderson-cooper-reads-orlando-victims-names-ac.cnn

+ Lin-Manuel Miranda 

++ J-Lo and Lin-Manuel Miranda