this morning #2106.

this morning, she was a robot pushing a stroller along through throngs of people. “excuse me” on repeat. places to be. parting the sea. wanting to put this seemingly random crowd behind them as soon as was humanly possible. she stopped & got up on her toes to try & get a better look. folks as far as the eye could see. somehow, her son was still fast asleep down there while tumult pulsed all around them. she kept pushing along. two dozen “excuse mes” later, she found that she could go no further. just up ahead, for some reason the police had blocked off the street. she tried to hold in the steam. a minute. a minute more until the overwhelm overtook her & she acknowledged defeat with a piercing scream. woke up her son.