The Prey of Freedom

Hi. My name’s Lea, like the field. I’m sixteen and i live on a farm that’s too far away from the public schools so i’m home-schooled, but not, like, Christian home-schooled. My parents pulled me out of that a few years ago. My younger brother and i read a lot of books and learn what we want to learn. All that knowledge gets me in trouble though, because i mouth off to my dumb neighbors when they stick God and guns in my face. And i stick up for the people that they hate—the outsiders, the freaks, the people who live different lifestyles than them. Look, i’m okay with living our lives without bothering each other, but when they start trying to dictate who can do what and whether i can get education and healthcare and, y’know, basic essentials of living in a community, well then i’ve gotta push back. And i do. And a lot of bad things happen and people get hurt. I dunno, maybe i should’ve kept my mouth shut, but when injustice happens at your doorstep, i guess you gotta stand up to it. I tried to, anyway….