say her name

I would never describe myself as a poet, but I did just complete a poetry manuscript. I was aiming for thirty poems but last night I hit 28 and knew I needed to take a break. If you add in the 30+ haiku I wrote, I’m well over my self-imposed limit. It’s not hard to write about police brutality when every week brings new reports of unarmed Black women and men gunned down by cops. It’s not hard to write about youth activism when students are marching across the country. It’s not hard to focus on the ways gun violence impacts Black women and girls—as this 11-year-old girl explains—but it’s tiring. I’m weary today and feel like I could go right back to bed but might take a walk instead. It’s a good day for the botanic garden. The snow from last week’s storm should be gone, and it’s nice to see flecks of purple here and there as crocuses welcome the new season. I’m thinking about revisiting an old screenplay, and I’ve got to revise The Return so I can get that novel out before the month ends…still thinking about returning to Scotland and moving to DC and maybe going out to LA with a friend who just got a job there. I feel itchy and weary and basically ate my way to the end of this poetry manuscript. But my agent emailed me from Bologna to let me know there’s strong interest among editors, so maybe this will be the year I self-publish less. It’ll always be my go-to option, but it’s nice to share the labor with others!

That fierce dragon charm was a gift from Maya Gonzalez—and she has another gift on her blog this month: “5 weeks of expanding the mind and beautifying the world with Queer/Trans/Intersex fabulousness!” Do take some time to read and reflect on these critical essays, and if you’re an educator, make sure your students have access to Maya and Matthew’s latest books: They She He Me: Free to Be! and The Gender Wheel. It’s important to demand change from our leaders but as June Jordan reminded us, “We are the ones we have been waiting for…”