Standing Through
How's the day shaping up in Minneapolis?
Extremely cold. But we have seen thousands of candle flames and people all bundled up standing on street corners and sidewalks at night everywhere, holding signs. Bodies of all types standing through, in our frigid north January air. Eight below and breath turning visible the moment it leaves the mouth.
Neighbors braving the discomfort. Choosing to be part of the body count—the Better Angels version. Needed so much right now.
A candle flame is not a fragile thing. Not at all. It extends out, gives, provides warmth. You have to cup your hand around it and the heat finds your palm, finds your face, finds the face of the person standing next to you. Keeping all of the candles lit becomes its own more-than-human tending. Small and serious and necessary.
In this city, our persistence is Eyes Not Lies. Showing up on these sidewalks and at living intersections, phone held up in one hand, candle in the other. Flesh and knuckles making a point that a book cannot make alone.
When this type of cold slaps or whacks or bites, we stay anyway.
The flame extends.
26 January 2026
Staying Alive
Author: Oyparaploo
Methodology: Wonderful Garbage
Style: Noir Chanson
