Tarah Townsell
Bio
She/Her
Mother. Wife. Sister. Auntie.
Queer. Writer. Lover. Fighter.
Things that move me-
Helping young people with mental health, addiction, recovery, self-harm, surviving and thriving by telling and sharing my stories.
Stories (3)
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15 songs to keep you safe.
Because it doesn’t feel very safe anymore. To be young, queer, and black, in a red state. Family walks get tricky, navigating down the streets in our neighborhood. Making every effort to avoid the streets with the most trump flags. Try not to stare at the confederate flags or those thin blue line flags as we walk by. It’s just a stupid flag, I tell myself. Everyone is entitled to their values and beliefs I say. None of what I say to myself makes me feel better or safe.
By Tarah Townsell5 years ago in Beat
"Big Wheels Keep on Turning"
“And we’re rollin’, ohhhh, rollin’ yea.” The slow and steady, tsss, tsss, tsss from the drum hat and the strum up and down across the strings of the guitar. In the middle of the 90s, in the middle of my living room, there I was blaring Proud Mary on my mothers Sony shelf style stereo system, while “What’s love got to do with it” (Touchstone Pictures 1993) played on the T.V. in the background. Most nights I spent doing this, at all hours of the night. Re-enacting scenes from the movie and performing for my 4-year-old sister, newborn brother and my entire collection of stuffed animals. Sifting through my mothers’ exotic wardrobe and costumes, I would find the outfit that would match as close to what she was wearing on the covers of her albums or herself portrayed in the movie. A red pants suit and black heels, stumbling into the living room/ stage, “They call it Nutbush, Nutbush city limits, owwwweeeee, Nutbush city limits.” I would tie sheets together to make the white dress with slits up the sides. “Rivvveerr deeeep, mountain higgggghhhhh.” I would shake it like a tail feather until my siblings and stuffed animals were finally asleep. Being careful to put my newborn brother in his crib and under the light that made him glow in the dark. I would climb into the big chair in the living room and listen to Tina until I eventually fell asleep. My mother worked a 9-5 during the day and she would come home make us dinner and tuck us in and leave again for her other job at night.
By Tarah Townsell5 years ago in Beat
