Typewriter Rodeo: How To Words Now

Each week, the Standard reaches out to Austin’s Typewriter Rodeo for a custom poem on Texas topics.

By Kari Anne HoltAugust 13, 2021 11:07 am,

Navigating the pandemic has been hard all along. But, now, life circumstances are calling some of us to in-person socialization for the first time in a long time. Masks and social distance — and outdoor gathers are still the safest. But what even to say in small talk anymore? That was the inspiration for this Typewriter Rodeo poem.

How To Words Now

sentence words what
talking small to fellow humans
what
existing together
with strangers
in one space
how do words
convey the way
we learn to do
these things
again?
what
are greetings
not typed in chat
how are smiles
shared again
when your whole face
bares bright
and it’s not just your eyes
attempting to grin
do we hug and sneeze
and laugh
and irl chat
or do we not do those things yet
what is this world
how do we understand
the ways to be together
the rules of working words
when the only thing
any of us knows
for sure for sure
is that none of us knows
what’s coming next
and there are no words
to explain that
in any kind of chat

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