Good Girl Energy
A ghost who lives in your house but all they do is rearrange your fridge magnets to spell out self care and helpful messages
You go downstairs in the morning, reach to open the door and pull out some juice
DONT FORGET YOU HAVE A DOCTOR APPOINTMENT AT 2 say the fridge magnets
Then they wiggle and slide around
ALSO YOURE ALMOST OUT OF ICE CREAM YOU SHOULD PICK UP SOME TODAY
Next morning
YOU WERE SLEEPING POORLY SO I TURNED DOWN THE TEMPERATURE SOME
ALSO I STARTED YOUR COFFEE
Afternoon trip to the fridge
DONT FORGET TO HAVE SOME WATER TODAY
AND DONT WORK SO LATE THIS EVENING
After a Tinder date leaves
I DONT LIKE HIM HE KEPT INTERRUPTING YOU
ALSO WHEN YOU WERE OUT OF THE ROOM HE MADE A MEAN FACE AT THE CAT
Oh no this last one was basically that one scene from Beyond Two Souls never mind this idea sucks
After a stressful several days in politics the ghost leaves
I AM GOING TO DELETE TWITTER OFF YOUR PHONE SOON IT'S MAKING YOU SAD
HERE
I LOADED UP A CARTOON ON NETFLIX AND BROUGHT DOWN THE FUZZY BLANKET FROM UPSTAIRS
SORRY I SCARED YOU WITH THE LOUD THUMP YESTERDAY I WAS TRYING TO ALPHABETIZE YOUR BOOKS AND DROPPED ONE
One morning the fridge just says
HEY
then the letters move slowly, hesitantly
I SAW YOU LOOKING AT DRESSES ONLINE AND CRYING LAST NIGHT
another slow rearrangement
I THINK YOU WOULD BE PRETTY IN THE BLUE ONE
ITS OKAY
When the dress arrives you panic and leave it in the package for several days.
Eventually the package is moved to the top of your dresser, still sealed.
THE CAT WAS CHEWING ON IT says the fridge
TAKE YOUR TIME
The night you eventually try it on, you only manage to look in the mirror for maybe 30 seconds before sobbing and pulling the dress off, throwing it deep into a closet. You don't look at the fridge. You go straight to bed.
The next morning the dress is on a hangar in the closet, smoothed out. It isn't prominent, just cared for.
I THOUGHT YOU LOOKED NICE
IM SORRY IT HURTS
A couple days of moping and anxiety later
I NOTICED YOU HAVENT SEEN YOUR THERAPIST LATELY
MAYBE THAT WOULD HELP?
Your therapist books you for a couple weeks out. You're angry a lot. You throw the fridge magnets in a box. You want to be left alone.
You don't hear from the ghost.
The therapist appointment helps. You don't solve anything but it gives you a place to cry and be listened to.
You put the magnets up before bed.
The next morning they say IM SORRY I MADE YOU MAD
You lean against the kitchen counter and quietly say you weren't mad at them. Just at the world and at yourself.
WHY
because the world is scary and hard.
WHY YOURSELF
because you want things that are impossible.
the magnets don't move for a moment
NO
no?
NOT IMPOSSIBLE. JUST HARD.
You start to feel angry again. You breathe like your therapist reminded you about.
You change the subject. You ask where the ghost went.
YOU SEEMED TO WANT SPACE
you did. Or, you thought you did. But it ended up just making it hurt more.
I WORRIED IT MIGHT BUT DIDNT WANT TO FORCE IT
thanks, you say.
After a moment you ask WHERE they went
I CANT LEAVE THE HOUSE. I WENT TO THE ATTIC.
the attic?
YOU DONT GO THERE. I DIDNT WANT TO SPY.
...what I do, you ask quietly
I CANT TELL YOU
what would you do, then
I DONT KNOW
ITS NOT THE SAME
IM NOT LIKE YOU
like me how?
ALIVE
but you were once
I GUESS
I DONT REMEMBER
how long have you been here?
DONT KNOW
TIME WORKS WEIRD LIKE THIS
why are you here
RIGHT NOW?
BECAUSE I CARE
I'm scared, you say after a long silence
OF WHAT
that if I change things will be hard
The letters hesitate for a moment. Then they slowly slide into place
IT SEEMS LIKE THINGS ARE ALREADY HARD
you start crying again
YOU KNOW WHAT MAKES ME SAD the fridge spells out once you've finished crying
What? you ask
I DONT KNOW WHO I AM
I DONT KNOW ANYTHING ABOUT MYSELF
that is sad, you agree
I FEEL THINGS SOMETIMES BUT IT ISNT THE SAME
the letters start rearranging faster as the ghost keeps needing letters that are already in use
I DONT WANT THINGS
I DONT HAVE A SENSE OF ME
I DONT KNOW WHAT IS LIKE ME OR NOT LIKE ME
I DONT HAVE A STYLE OR A PERSONALITY OR A STORY TO TELL ABOUT MYSELF
IM NOT
the letters stop
..not coherent? you ask quietly
YEAH
you feel a ball of anxiety in your gut. Its been there for months. It feels like it is pulsing there, like a second heartbeat.
You know the feeling, you say quietly
ITS NOT A GOOD FEELING
not, it isn't
A long silence.
I HAVE TO BE THIS WAY
YOU DONT
you don't respond. Tears are threatening again and you can't bring yourself to speak.
Another long silence. You wonder if the ghost has left.
You hear a soft creak upstairs.
A minute later a white hangar with a blue dress floats into the kitchen, hooking onto the door to rest.
The letters rearrange again
YOU DONT HAVE TO BE A GHOST
It's a few minutes later. You went into the washroom to change: the ghost told you when it first started speaking to you that it stayed out of those rooms, that they were private.
You're in the kitchen, in the blue dress. You feel tall and misshapen and ridiculous. And also the ball inside your stomach hurts just a little bit less.
You ask how you look.
GOOD
good? You snort. You look like a cried-out, awkward mess.
YOU LOOK ALIVE
It's a week later. You just got back from therapy again. The tea kettle has the low rumble that means it will begin whistling any moment. A mug with a bag of something flowery sits ready.
WELCOME HOME, the magnets say
you're being really nice lately, you reply
YOUVE HAD A HARD WEEK
you snort quietly.
DID THERAPY HELP
some, you say. they gave you some resources, at least.
IM PROUD OF YOU
thanks, you say quietly.
The kettle whistles
It's a month later.
You left out a list of names you got from baby name websites.
Every morning the fridge greets you with a GOOD MORNING and one of the names from the list so you can see how it feels.
After about three weeks you came downstairs, saw the fridge, and felt a pang in your chest.
Do that one again, you whispered.
Every morning since then, the name hasn't changed. It feels weird. But good.
Life is scarier than it was a few months ago. You still don't know where you're going, or what you're doing. You talk to the ghost late into the night sometimes, fears and hopes and anxieties pouring out of you until you're empty. They're a good listener.
Life can be hard. Not everyone understands as you share your new name, as your wardrobe changes, as your priorities shift. Some old friends leave. Some new friends appear.
The ghost doesn't leave.
As the months go on, the hard things feel less hard. They're still difficult, but you find that facing obstacles isn't as scary when you have a sense of who you are. And sometimes you think its kind of nice, to know you've done things that are scary and made it through.
You and the ghost have a routine, now.
When you get dressed and prepped for the day, you always stop in the kitchen. You do a slow turn, a complete rotation, arms spread wide.
How do I look? you ask the room.
YOU LOOK ALIVE, the ghost always replies.
Day by day, you realize that you feel it, too.
It's good to be alive.
