She Worshipped the Sun from the Shadows

I have a strange relationship with sun worship. It begins with my grandmother who would spend days at a time basted in tanning oil, draped with a terrycloth towel, sweating out her frustration and (I now believe) treating her depression with Vitamin D. Today, cancer courses through her body. It spread from her skin.

I avoid the direct light most of the time. I like the way it makes the henna shine red in my hair and the way the warmth sinks down deep, giving me the comfort of a blanket wrapped over my shoulders on a cool starry night, reminding me of the bright days when I would stand in line at water fountains, feeling parched until the total satisfaction of fresh fluid renewed my young soul.

Nonetheless, I prefer the shadows. With them, sunlight can dance through trees and illuminate a path. #sheisthree