originally published 2/16/19
On Valentines Day I hosted a cry-in where a bunch of strangers got together and talked about heartbreak, loneliness, fear, trauma, dysphoria, loss, and so much more. Yes we cried together, but we also giggled and sneezed and hugged. It was one of the most powerful nights of my life. Where do you go when your heart is broken? Where do you go when you need to scream or grieve or cry? There are so few spaces in the world where we can be honest about how terrifying living is. I wanted to create a space for this kind of honesty, where we could — for a moment — stop trying to be digestible & palatable, and instead be honest. What I have learned is that performance is one of the few spaces left in this society where we can be honest anymore. Why do we call people dramatic simply for expressing their feelings? The night was about dramatic intimacy: that something about performance, a microphone, a spot-light gives us permission to be more honest & bare witness to each others’ pain. I want to give everyone in the world a microphone or a spotlight & bear witness to their expression: the good, the bad, the everything. I think that’s what it takes to heal: to re-sensitize ourselves to our pain & the pain of others. Hosting this on valentines was even more important: on a day where love is concentrated & uplifted in one direction, we proliferated it. We found ways to love strangers as friends. Thank you to everyone who showed up. You changed my life. 📸@simoncourchel @theinvisibledog
