LIFE WITH A HAMSTER

it all began when kathy tew insisted on bringing it home
we were in grade 6 and pets in classes were still cool

unless you took the bus
the city bus....
we managed to avoid scrutiny on the first bus
the little rodent napped his way on

but the second bus
the fateful second bus...
REFUSED ENTRY
ENTRY DENIED
little dude (forgive me, i forget his name)
or even if it was a 'he'
i digress...little dude was safely locked in his cage
complete with wheel (still want to try one of those things)
and was a threat to no one
shampoo bottles on a plane are a much greater threat
who knows what could happen with those suds
ah, i digress again...

so we had to take a ride home with a stranger...
a nice stranger, a bank manager...the people in the banks are all nice
dammit i digressed again!

i shit bricks when he dropped kathy tew off first
now it was just me and the hamster and a nice bank manager
...............and he dropped me off at home, safe and sound with the hamster

i thank that nice bank manager man for making me feel safe
and for simply offering a nice gesture to two stranded girls and a hamster
i wish i knew his name
the bank is gone now
in it's place, an arts store

i am blessed with a safe and happy life
blessed
many women have trusted like i have, and have not arrived home safely
many women suffer childhood scars that may never be healed
many women cry even though they smile at their children every day
many women feel broken

many women are the voice of our future
many women, holding hands

i still remember that day like it was yesterday
i remember calling kathy tew to let her know i was home safe
i remember the relief in her voice
i remember that she was my sister
i remember that she was there for me
and that we were in this together

i will also remember all of the missing and murdered indigenous women
in Canada, home of colonizing racist settlers
i will remember residential schools and poverty and abuse
i will remember every single policy that shamed and blamed
and i will remember steven harper's legacy of international crime

and then i will dance with the moon and the wildflowers
in epiphany
as we blast off the facade
firefighter regulation hoses required
and i will be at the front of the team
who holds one
tightly
and oozing with love