Theresa Markila
Bio
I'm a leftist activist and organizer trying to support myself and help other organizers get the support we need to make change in our communities. Every little bit helps!
Stories (8/0)
Summer Fresh
The most interesting houses we’ll ever know are usually the haunted ones. As a small boy, Joe discovered that one of the best parts of summer was the food, and especially fresh berries. He would put berries on everything - cereal, sandwiches, even mac and cheese. He would sit on the balcony of his family’s tiny apartment on the hottest days, feeling the breeze and the berries cooling him.
By Theresa Markila2 years ago in Fiction
The Flames of Freedom
There weren't always dragons in the Valley. Since they came down here, I sit on my front porch each morning and watch them in the distance, knowing that the distance will only continue to get shorter. They radiate raw emotions that I feel in my own body: fear, confusion, anger, grief.
By Theresa Markila2 years ago in Fiction
What I learned from the pandemic
As a teenager, I loved Stephen King’s The Stand. I read it over and over again, terrified of the idea that a virus could bring down our civilization but hopeful in how people would come together as a community to build something better out of what remained. As I grew older, I realized that our civilization could use some creative rebuilding, though I certainly didn’t want it to happen in such a painful way.
By Theresa Markila2 years ago in Humans
The Last Bottle of Water
The last water storage tank still standing was heavily guarded by the local militia, according to rumors. Only members of their compound would have access to it. We knew it wouldn’t last long enough, but we didn’t know if they had any plans for when it started to run low. No one had ever made plans, even after people started warning that we would run out of water. Our obsession with instant gratifications, shareholder profits, and the selfishness of rugged individualism always got in the way of long-term planning. All we knew to do was fight and kill each other over what remained.
By Theresa Markila3 years ago in Horror
Home Away From Home
In droplets of water, we fell from where we had been seeded in the clouds. Through cold air we soared and plunged, unable to see clearly as the world below was warped and blurred past the water’s edge. But we knew life was waiting for us, and it had been a long journey since the last life we’d found. When we land, we will know what to do.
By Theresa Markila3 years ago in Horror
Cow Dog
Meet my friend Ranger. He’s an Australian Cattle Dog, so of course he dresses as a cow for Halloween. Every year. He’s never worked on a ranch, he’s never had an opportunity to herd any cattle, but he did enjoy meeting one once at a recreated historic village, where he and the cow sniffed each other through a fence, nose to nose. I held my breath while watching, afraid he might decide to start a chase, but he was satisfied just to introduce himself and then move on.
By Theresa Markila3 years ago in Petlife
