Story Z 'Folded Girls' by Raelinda Woad
Product Description
At the other end of the millennium
In a forest deep and green
A pride of girls held a ritual
And entered their own dreams.
One became a deer, one became a bear
One became a river of stone.
Each one was given armor and wisdom
And each one woke up, a woman.
But late last night, in a desperate rite
In a jungle made of steel
A student believed some lies she received
And she starved herself back to a girl.
Little girl lost,
Little line crossed
A little bit more each day.
Confidence,
dropped
Blossoming,
stopped
She's folding herself away.
Just at the time
when young girls are finally
Given the keys to the moon
They are told not to try unlocking the sky
Until they unearth their own bones.
Who can you blame
when it strikes them like rain
A drop at a time.
And like all growing things
they are ingrained:
Abide by the laws of your tribe.
So they bind up their wills
and use them as spells
Invoking dark transformations.
And at night while they sleep,
while their mirrors weep
They wander, lost in their own dreams.
Little girls lost
Little coins tossed
Onto the altars of shame.
Self respect,
turned.
Self contempt,
learned
They're folding themselves away.
At the other end of the millennium
Life wasn't easy. Or safe.
But deep at night,
when girls would ignite
Women emerged from the flames.