I took a breath today.
I realize I haven’t done that lately
Not in quite the same way
But today
I took a breath.
Today, hope replaced dread
Anticipation replaced anxiety
A sense of progress replaced the surety of the usual daily briefing
of regression
Today I breathed.
I sighed relief for all the work we’ve all put in
And thought with pride
Of who all placed their skin
In the game of democracy
We tried the system
We tested it
And we won
So I took a breath.
And momentarily mourned
All the relationships I lost
Once truth became too much
All the anger I’ve held in my back
All the sorrow of friend after breathless friend
Victims of hubris, of freedom that overstepped
All the lines people crossed in their boldness
Lines in the sand
Lines water couldn’t wash clean
And I sighed
And welcomed back all that can start again
Now that it’s over
I’ll sit in this breath
Just for a little while
Before we inhale collectively
And exhale through the labor of
Accountability
But not today
Today I danced
Today I smiled
Today I laughed
Today I pondered
Today I reveled
Today I rested
I took a breath today.
Jasmine Cochran
November 7, 2020
Jasmine Cochran from China - Read Jasmine's Bio
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