what you don’t know can hurt you
what you don’t know can turn your body
against you
—Brian Russell
Blessed are those with low pain tolerance: The world drops you mid-air
then asks, Are you alright? In 2014, my name got crossed out of a lineup
consisted of 12 members for an interschool dance competition I dreamt
of joining since sophomore year. If I had the guts back then, I could have
been expelled from school at 16. If I had the guts back then, I would not be
talking about this, and that, this, that, this, that, this, that, and this, though
I’m getting ahead of myself. The narrative begins in the part where I was in
the parking lot, practicing. Post-lunch, our crew leader turned on the music
from his portable speaker. I walked towards the stage. I warmed up and up.
Then, collapse.