XI. (Working to Relax)
Emma startles awake to the sun of the morning from a nightmare,
After finally making it to her apartment and settling down after a long day.
The day had indeed been interesting and Emma wondered what the next day would bring. Despite the fact that she had a studio, Emma liked to work in her apartment because it calmed her nerves and helped her to let go of all the strands of thought she’d amassed over the day. After she had showered off the grime of the day and relaxed in her pajamas, Emma sat on her couch with the radio on, slowly dismantling a mop. She could have easily cut the strands of fabric and been done with it, but she worked slowly to keep all of the strands intact and to remove the wooden handle and the metal that held it together. She had completed a rough sketch of the project she would eventually finish in her studio with the complete installation, and that night she decided that fashioning a dog from the fabric of the mop and creating a fire hydrant out of foam would be enough to lull her to sleep.
As she listened to the radio, she heard various news stories and because it was relatively late in the evening, the news station was playing international news. There were updates on the myriad conflicts in the middle east, she heard a sound bite of a scientist apologizing to the public once again for the malfunctioning GPS in the trucks that caused the migration, and then she heard something that piqued her interests.
“The president of Cuba will travel to the US next week to discuss easing sanctions and opening the country for tourism. Many speculate that the trip will finally put an end to the decades of animosity between the two countries.” Emma imagined going to Cuba. She had never been to any country in the Caribbean so she had no real reference for what she could expect there, but she was aware of the music and there was a Cuban restaurant near her apartment that she loved.
“Scientists have announced a breakthrough in meat production,” the announcer on radio continued. “In blind taste tests, participants were unable to distinguish a difference between meats produced completely in the lab with no animal product and those produced through natural means. In the past, scientists’ efforts have been largely criticized because testers often respond negatively to the unnatural taste and texture of meats created in a lab. Many expect these newly executed creations to hit stores in the coming year.”
Emma wondered if a vegetarian would eat meat that contained no animal whatsoever.
“The first woman elected to the office of President of the US, Louise Parker, recently traveled to South Africa to lead a summit of past and present female heads of state. President Parker, who only served one term, will announce an annual summit for female leaders, the location of which will change every year. Attendees will discuss women’s issues with the aim of furthering the equal rights of women worldwide.”
Emma had voted for President Parker when she won the first time, and also when she lost the second time. Many people were convinced that her weak foreign policy lead to the resurgence of terrorists groups in the Middle East, but Emma saw her for what she was; a peacekeeper. She had insisted on finding alternatives to occupation and war as terrorist groups gained steam in the region and in North Africa, but after the bombing at a US embassy in Syria that killed fifteen Americans, the country seemed to turn on President Parker who lost the vote for reelection by a landslide. Emma didn’t think of it as a slight against the first female commander in chief, it was obvious that war mongers had succeeded in scaring the American public and convinced them that Parker wasn’t well suited for the job; it was a slight the efficacy of diplomacy if anything.
Emma finished with the mop and tied it with white string to create the shape of a dog. She moved onto the hydrant that she essentially carved with a chisel and smoothed with sandpaper; it was quick work compared to the mop dog. She positioned the objects on her coffee table and she imagined the completed work and flashed back to the scene on the subway from earlier that day that had inspired it; the homeless man who had urinated while sitting on the train.
Emma stretched her arms high over her head and yawned, finally ready to close her eyes.
She crawls into bed and snuggles the stuffed bear that she has had for years and she drifts off thinking about completing her project the next day. But that would come after her disturbing dream.
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