Go Panthers! Every day my brother hopes to just avoid drawing attention, so he purposely chooses his clothes and puts on his face, says "Yes" "Fine" "Yes" to the questions from our parents about homework and class before catching the bus to junior high. He walks a tightrope everyday in junior high past the young assholes he tries to avoid who sit in the back of the class. my brother sits near the teacher purposely at the front, under her nose, across from a sullen red head with a pizza face. Walking down the hall requires a war face: He fights this battle every day in junior high although he never knows where the attack will come from and he's never sure which guys or girls to avoid so he walks and sits alone purposely trying (really hard) to never raise his hand in class. He's uncomfortable sitting with his back to the class and more uncomfortable when the teacher tells them to turn and face one another. It's better not to face each other in junior high where looking another guy in the eyes purposely is just like asking for a fight and the conflicts he can avoid are the ones he's assured to walk away from. In the hall he hears "Where'd you get those shoes from?" It's one of the assholes from the back of the class. My brother steps aside to avoid taking the asshole's elbow in the face. He can never be too careful in junior high where boys step on shoe heels purposely to build themselves in the craven MTV image purposely designed to separate young consumers from their dollars. For my brother, in junior high, where image matters so much more than class, where the best defense is a hard, handsome face, it is a trap difficult to avoid. When I'm home I pick him up from junior high and he purposely says "Fine, everything's fine" when I ask about class. Later I ask "He tried to hit you in the face?" and he says "Nothing I couldn't avoid."

Dancing to Peter Gabriel In the beginning, it’s quiet and dark. The hypnotic drum beat of I Grieve Begins as the lights gradually rise Illuminating five figures on the stage, Crouched on their knees, foreheads on the floor. They slowly lift to an arch, coming to life, Defying their backbones like another life Form. The crowd sits attentively in the dark Watching shapes like angels while they grieve. After an enchanting round of poses, the dancers rise To spin to the music, moving around the stage. They stop with bare feet planted on the floor To capture a pose so sorrowful, they sink to the floor Like the slipping away of a precious life. The sadness is felt by those residing in the dark Who watch the dance to There’s no one home, I grieve For you. The dancers in flowing purple and blue rise Like spirits awakening to haunt the stage. Graceful arabesque turns erupt across the stage, Feet squeaking from turning on the floor. Faces reflect the pondering of losing a life, Tears trickle down anonymous faces in the dark As they hear the lyrics, I can’t handle this, I grieve. The dancers point their toes and let their heads rise To the ceiling, looking at the lights as they rise To a stand, their glances change the lights so the stage Glows a heavenly blue with angels on a floor Of clouds, dancing in the mourning of a life That has left them for a place unknown in the dark. So hard to move on, still loving what’s gone, I grieve For you. You leave me, missing what’s gone, I grieve For you. The tone changes, and the mood can rise To one of hope. Lively pique turns swirl the stage, When the music calms again, they pose on the floor As they did in the beginning. Life carries on, life Carries on and on…The lights slowly fade to dark. Did I believe this dream? How I will find relief, I grieve. Life carries on in the dark and on stage. The dancers rise from the floor and walk offstage.