This Is Us
How It Felt to Be in Washington, D.C. on Election Night
The beautiful world I am imagining has a place for you in it. Can you say the same about me?
Last night, election night, I stood on the precipice of today and embodied every inch of my being. There I was at the fence peering in at the White House while Beyoncé’s Freedom played behind me, wondering how many more moments I will get after this one. I wonder how many people out here voted for liberation. And liberation from what and for who. On my hand were five stories of love in my life I had written before I arrived so I would remember why I voted and who I voted for. On my hand was a lifeline, not only back to me, but toward the best of humanity that I wanted to fight to keep.
I had shown up to hold witness to this moment and the lives around me. The atmosphere was electrifying. Where do you throw your focus? Do you feel yourself first, and then expand? Or do you reach out before you pull in? How do you decide who to care about? When do you decide to leave them and look away? Do you carry their memory or do you let it slide away? I have sat down to write this many times within the last 24 hours and I still do not have the answers to any of these questions. I still do not know who to memorialize in writing and who to leave…
