...while all the well known global tyrants and bullies soak up every bit of "ink" and media publicity to detail each word and aspect of their escalating imperialist ego battles, there is no debate or compassionate coverage for the tens of thousands of people around the world who are dying right now in the harsh cold of winter...because we are #homeless and no one will "dare" take us in, we are banned from and penalized for making a fire to keep warm, and our very existence is marked as "illegal".

...for those of us who manage to survive it, there will be no media frenzy or public outrage against the insane number of us who lost toes, fingers, feet, hands, limbs, or even the tips of our ears and noses because we were forced to remain sleeping outside in the snow and ice, in negative temperatures, and with cutting cold high winds...while minions of these same attention grabbing tyrants came and stole our tents, tarps, blankets, food, water, and clothing.

...no. winter will pass, spring will come, and the people who see us as trash will pretend not to see us at all while stepping over our weary, maimed, or dead bodies without care.

...so while i huddle in a hole over my own hidden fire, also invisibly fighting to survive the season, i mourn the uncounted dead, the forgotten and "swept" away...and i weep4us a11 who endure this perpetual suffering...💔

#firesaveslives #illegal2bhomeless #winterkills #fckcapitalism #foodnotbombs #freepalestine

I feel safe enough to try to listen when we argue

#ThingsYouCantUnsay #BreakingUp

We sat at the table, and we argued. It was tense.

I felt triggered.

But I’m healing.

I broke up with her almost a year ago, and couple’s therapy since then has included some of the darkest and most painful moments between us, as I slowly came to accept that even if her pain seemed absurd and unearned, I could clearly observe how deeply she was wounded. I hope she has seen the same about me.

Healing doesn’t mean I’m all better, that my triggers have no power over me. I’m learning to understand my triggers and notice when they activate, and I’m learning that I’m actually safer with her than I thought I was. And I’m learning that we don’t need to predicate growing as a family on healing the wounds in the relationship we had.

We argue in front of the children, now. We let them see our disagreements. I want them to know that people who care about each other sometimes disagree. To show our children what it looks like to care about someone you don’t agree with and to try to understand their perspective. I’m still practicing actually doing that, but even that growth is important to share with our children.

I want so very much to help our children grow into adults who know what it looks like to care about themselves, and to be in relationships of mutual respect with people they care about.

I’m proud of how much I’ve grown since I chose to truly center myself, to care about my needs. I’m still learning how to be myself and be the better parent and co-parent I want to be, and choosing this path made it possible.