Hot Water
I go to the sweat lodge. My first sweat. It seems too much at first. One woman screams panicked, “I can’t take it!” Everyone tells her to get down by the floor where it’s cooler. I proudly stay seated on my knees. Inhale deeply, feel the steam burn my lungs open, exhale slowly, sweat out my skin. People chant and make noises, but nothing authentic comes to me. I sit silent and breathe the steam through my body.