hunt-johnston, k. t.

English

University of Central Florida (UCF): STARS (Showcase of Text, Archives, Research & Scholarship)

SEEDS: The Literary Journal of the Sisters of Color Volume 4 Article 9 1996 you don't understand k. t. hunt-johnston Find similar works at: https://stars.library.ucf.edu/seeds University of Central Florida Libraries http://library.ucf.edu This Work is brought to you for free and open access by STARS. It has been accepted for inclusion in SEEDS: The Literary Journal of the Sisters of Color by an authorized editor of STARS. For more information, please contact STARS@ucf.edu. Recommended Citation hunt-johnston, k. t. (1996) "you don't understand," SEEDS: The Literary Journal of the Sisters of Color: Vol. 4, Article 9. Available at: https://stars.library.ucf.edu/seeds/vol4/iss1/9 you don't understand don't come up behind and startle me i might hurt u don't slight me i might hurt myself u know.. .i park in the handicapped zone because i am ... with everyone shooting that look i still don't have to justify what the ignorant cannot see and fake a limp on those days i just can't take it anymore i am tired of people thinking i am getting special privileges "how come she can?" is Lupus no reason? walk a day in this body wake up feeling shitty for no reason at all fear the cold and the sun for no reason at all go in the bathroom and vomit (come out smiling) for no reason at all have a fever for no reason at all be Black and blue for no reason at all have the doctors treat u with bone chilling efficiency for no reason at all realize death hangs around the comer for no reason at all yes, this is my special privilege especially when the world fears illness, does not want to listen let alone learn the lessons it contains for u, or someone u know, maybe even love may meet this monster when i get all my other credentials together 19 my grandmother's caregiver mother of two cats recovering addict formerly battered woman sexual assault survivor (who remembers the word courage contains the word rage) healing entity poet woman in a relationship lover bank employee grocery shopper a licensed driver former dealer lover of Ethiopian food ...a woman whose life is ending and beginning at the same time ... pseudo-vegetarian health conscious human herbologist french speaking meditator and mediator jazz fiend honey roasted almond popper whistle blower avid reader of novels about women of power i get a brief idea of who i am today but i park handicapped on days i need to so if u ask me how i feel (ifu really wanna know) when it's good i feel better than u but when its not --everything hurts and it feels like gravity is bulldozing me under i tell u i am scared i won't be able to take care of myself and have to depend on others who don't know how to live with this and don't really know how to live at all. k.t. hunt-johnston 20 

you don\u27t understand

https://stars.library.ucf.edu/cgi/viewcontent.cgi?article=1062&amp;context=seeds

you don\u27t understand

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