in light of the recent mass shootings that have taken place in texas, buffalo, and the hundreds of others adding up to more than there have been days in 2022 thus far—do i remember this poem i read as an 18 year old journalist in high school amongst the aftermath of the parkland florida shooting. how incredibly hard it is to find words to describe the grief that consumes me when i think of all the lives lost to such carelessness and lack of action in this country. the helplessness felt by so many, when the same people who argue their right to bear arms in defense of their families are the same ones who refuse to regulate the hand who wields the weapon despite both serving the same purpose—when tragedies like this happen, where are they? where does this repetitive nightmare end? in difficult times, i always look to writing to bring me comfort or some semblance of peace in the parts of my brain that need grounding. what is the opposite of a gun? #endgunviolence