Through These Winsome Gates

There is a line between female and feminine. The two are not synonymous, and neither can define the entirety of any one person. Yet, together, they form archetypal images that live on in our collective memory. Those images are not a complete answer to what ails our society, but addressing the wounds inflicted by the ways we have turned from these archetypes may help us to find a way forward that honors the truth each human carries within themself.

"Who are you?"

It's every therapist's favorite question.

Many years ago, humanity's combined digital knowledge coalesced from the cloud into a sentient AI known as the Thunderhead. Over time, it helped create a utopic world where resources are properly allocated and struggle has become largely optional. With its perfect and complete knowledge of both the world and the inhabitants thereof, the Thunderhead replaced human systems of governance and led us into a future where the idea of generations has become as foreign as the idea of suffering. But now, something is amiss.

Waylay a delivery truck for a mass-produced beer. Feed the driver an assortment of delightful local foods. Dump the beer (hang onto the bottles, so they can be recycled). Replace it with an assortment of local micro-brews.

Welcome to the early days of the resistance.

The poets say that our vision goes dark when death takes us. It’s not true. A much simpler and much grander change takes place instead. Yet, in this moment, I am too galled to consider such possibilities.