Thursday, August 05, 2004

Sit Around And Think About Kim Day!

You feel like a heel for never having visited her in jail. But you've spoken to others who have and you just couldn't bring yourself to see her like that.

"Like a monster," they said. "She's someone else now. She couldn't even speak in words anymore. Just in groans and punches to her own chest and belly."

Once upon a time you and Kim were gonna change the world. "Our love is our activism," she'd whisper just before a kiss. "Our activism is our love."

But the war against Choice escalated and Kim was called to the front lines to put a bullet through the windshield of an abortion doctor. You were behind the wheel of the getaway car. The bullet seared through the flesh of the doctor's shoulder and, as it happened, he lost the use of his left arm and bowed out of the practice.

But you and Kim got caught. The doctor brought suit against Mission For The Child because Kim proudly told authorities that she had been acting as a soldier for the Mission when she pulled the trigger. The Doctor was awarded millions and the Mission went under. And the criminal trial focused on Kim as the shooter. You were handed probation, but Kim was given twenty years in maximum security.

It's been twelve years now since the shooting. You are older and more tired. Your wife died delivering your second daughter Denise. You're not a militant anymore, you're just a father and a widower.

You wish Kim might have been killed in jail, or at least she might have served her full sentence. She might never come find you, but if she does you will have no choice but to give her food and a bed until she's willing to free you of your responsibility and move on. And now you're going to go into the bedroom and reread the last letter she sent you five years prior after you told her you were about to marry.

Happy Sit Around And Think About Kim Day!