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ZORA Check-In
Checking In: We Survive and We Thrive
“Damn, the things we must survive to survive.” — Pat Parker, poet and activist
In a 1988 letter, Parker wrote these words to Audre Lorde, as she confessed she was nervous to do a poetry reading after her surgery, a mastectomy that she said left her self-conscious at times. To understand the heft of Parker’s words, here’s the full context of what she said: “I’m assuming this will pass at some point. And then again, maybe it won’t. It took me over 30 years to realize that I wasn’t ugly. Damn, the things we must survive to survive.”
In a lot of ways, survival is layered. We get through one set of obstacles to be met with more challenges ahead. There’s the lies we’ve been told and the ones we tell ourselves. Yet, we survive. The illnesses, losses of loved ones, layoffs, and everything in between. We survive.
But we are more than our survival. We’ve proven we are both the miracle and the miracle worker. Full of wonder and zest. We are true marvels who do more than endure the world’s cruelties. We rise above them. — Christina M. Tapper, ZORA deputy editor
ZORA fam, tell us how you’re thriving these days. #ZORACheckIn
