One night in college I woke up because something kept crashing down the stairwell. I peeked out and saw two giant, drunk, laughing male acquaintances throwing my bike down the stairwell, hauling it up, and throwing it down again.

Did I yell at them to stop? Nope. Did I grab my bike and bring it into my room? Nope. Tell them they owed me a new bike? Nope. What I did was instantly accept that my bike and I had met our fate and there was nothing to do about it. All I was conscious of feeling was a deep, exhausted resignation.

There have been other times in my life, when wronged, that I’ve done the same thing: give up and give in without even the beginnings of resistance. These memories are profoundly disturbing to me and I’ve finally trained myself out of it. So should everyone, especially these days, when what rightfully belongs to all of us is being snatched away by those who have no right to take it.

Demand It Courageously, by Julia Hartwig

Make some room for yourself, human animal.
      Even a dog jostles about on his master’s lap to
improve his position. And when he needs space he
runs forward, without paying attention to commands
or calls.
      If you didn’t manage to receive freedom as a gift,
demand it as courageously as bread and meat.
      Make some room for yourself, human pride and
dignity.
      The Czech writer Hrabal said:
      I have as much freedom as I take.

Click here for more information about Polish poet Julia Hartwig. Today’s poem is from In Praise of the Unfinished, published in 2008 by Knopf. 
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