Seeing that you are depressed
why don’t you give your mind a rest.
Kick off your shoes
take off your socks
don’t answer the door
if anyone should knock.
Let things happen
as it will
for we both know that time
doesn’t stand still.
I hope this thought has relieved your mind
because if it hasn’t I have wasted my time.
Skinny (also known by her birth name of Michelle Spearman) was a beloved unhoused community member who lived in Oakland, and a founding member of the 37MLK encampment community. She died in April, 2021 at the age of 61. May this poem preserve her voice in our pages and beyond.