in the aftermath of everything indigenous scientists discovered ways to determine the precise shade of depressionanxietyadhdautismcptsdschizoborderline-induced delirium trans ndns were experiencing at any given moment. the scale only came in dsm certified flavors because that was the language we used at the time.
still, we must recognize that the indigenous scientists of their time thought they were doing a service for trans ndns. they believed, however strange it may seem, that if only they could assign a specific hexadecimal triplet to the emotions of the trans ndns when they experienced suffering, then they could induce some kind of public empathy or maybe even healing.
luminous in their splendor, the trans ndn rainbow spectra filled rows upon rows of circular beadwork designs. they radiated outwards and inwards on star quilts. they even lived in the gradients of earrings sold on the latest exploitative crafting site. what began as a purely scientific endeavor spiraled into the leftover worlds until beautiful trans ndn trauma was dangling from the necks and ears of even the cheapest d-list celebrity. until the remnant department stores had copied the designs of trans ndn madness into the latest seasonal plastic. they were everywhere and nowhere at five cents a pop.
feeding frenzy came and went and trans ndns were still there, still screaming, each sound crystalizing in a string of beads. and after the strings withered away the beads were still there. in the middens, the superfunds, and the plain old burials. in rivers and in microfibers and eventually in the lining of cells in our bodies. it would take centuries for us to realize it, but this too was a kind of resilience.
eventually the indigenous scientists gave up on their work. they blamed the trans ndns for polluting the earth with their pain. but this was nothing new for those who were used to living in a world built out of their invisible aching presence. the only difference was that now everyone could see them, undeniable in their radiance.