20 true words: totally a cat person

Teenagers are like cats: sleepy, scruffy, smelly, sometimes hissy—beautiful, cruel— the more affection you crave, the less they allow.

20 true words: grimace

I hear you say again, “Smile.” “Emily, smile.” “Smile!” “Okay, I know you think you are smiling, but you’re not.”

20 true words

The siren song of my anxiety trills three minutes after you close the door. Will I know, when you’re gone?

20 true words: correction, if 20-3=y then y+20=t

Writing is not hard–spelling, grammar, syntax, commas– not hard. Paying attention is hard. Being fully aware of how many leaves were yesterday green and are today yellow. It’s exhausting. This bearing witness to–for–the world.

20 true words

I set my machines a-go—lit-bot, Roomba, dishwasher—before I leave to walk the manmade trails among these invasive vines.