yep I'm blank

narrowed eyes / periphery lost

Hi everyone,

The poem below was written a few weeks ago and is really about how hard it is to think after spending multiple hours straight on Zoom calls. But it’s remarkably similar to how I feel now, glued to the news trying to wrap my head around the atrocities that have taken place in Israel this week and the terrible war that is emerging from it.

The first time I have felt any kind of solace since this began was a few hours ago. I pulled up the song “Voyage” by Yahel and Eyal Barkan, which I’ve been listening to for decades; it’s one of my favorite classic trance songs. It was healing to listen to familiar, uplifting music that originated in Israel. The people who were killed at the trance music festival on Saturday were people like me, close to my age, dancing all night and all day, spreading peace, love, unity, and respect through music. Just like I used to do with my trance-loving friends before I pulled back on late nights to get more rest for my vocal health. I feel like I am honoring some of Saturday’s victims as I listen to the music that they loved and I love.

I pray for an end to hate, an end to violence. I sing, dance, and pray for love and peace.

Rachel

— —

yep I’m blank
narrowed eyes
periphery lost
to hours
focused
on a small
lit rectangle
demanding the best
of my daily brain.

— —