Tools

Emma Goldman-Sherman

Step catch-up eye strike

Step catch-up knee to groin
Step catch-up heel of hand to jaw

Step catch-up knee to groin

we are dancing forward for a change

I can back you up to the edge of the world

when you go down I have knee to head

if you take me down I have hand slap to balls

shake and bake, elbow to face, pivot to load

I can straight kick and side kick

pull close for the ax-kick

I can switch legs and do it again

you are not padded

all my blows land in your soft flesh

you are not expecting me to fight

I can flip you out of me with a hip thrust

or a bicycle kick.  I can move through you

ghostly father of my dreams

incarnate assholes of my past

we are dancing forward 

and when we dance

I change the dream 

with the tools I've learned 

how to shout not scream

I now recognize manipulation, warning signs

I can breathe, reset, protect myself

I can say what I want

I can make myself heard

and if you can't adjust to that

then I can walk away,

or I can dance you backward 

to the edge of the world

and show you the stars. 

2012 copyright Emma Goldman-Sherman

Thanks to Emma and Prepare (IMPACT New York)