We, the People

by Earnest, Eleanor, Gretchen, Nona, Marjory, [Alice, Lana]

[What do you see in the picture?]

That's a Coca-Cola and that's the one trying to be with it.

[Who's that in the picture?]

I guess that's supposed to be a person. He wants that coke to drink.

[What else do you see?]

It's an empty bottle. An "E" for effort. 

[What's the "person" doing?]

He's trying to fill the bottle but doesn't have anything to fill it with. The thing that's supposed to be a person is another bottle. They are trying to fill the two bottles up with ocean water.

[What's that taste like?]

It's salty, and the only one available. Maybe we're supposed to drink it, or maybe we're suppose to throw it away. Or maybe a little bit of both.

[What will happen if we drink it?]

It's hard to tell what will happen if we drink it. I don't think we'l die. We've got to have water to drink, that's for sure. Drinking salty water is stupid. I've never drank salty water. It would feel rather dull, and it wouldn't sharpen me up any.

[What will happen next?]

We're going to pick up these bottles and trade them back in. We'll get a dime a piece. Maybe a nickel. 

[What will we do with the money?]

We're going to buy more paper for more writing. We're going to start our own (news)paper. That's right! Once we get it all, it's a whole bunch of munch. Oh, yeah, it is, and the baking has to start, too.

[What will be in the paper?]

Maybe a picture of the area. We should see people and something good to look at. If that's what we're looking at, that's what we've got. 

[Do people like the paper?]

Our (news)paper is popular. They need to give everybody one. It's a bunch of junk, it's a newspaper and that's all it is. And that's what he's separating us from.

[Who's separating us?]

People who have stories to tell are separating us with their ideas. 

[What's the name of the paper?]

It could be called "Eleanor's Book".

[Have the people learned anything yet?]

We haven't learned anything yet. We should go ahead and trash it. (break for argument)

Eleanor has a big influence on all nine of us. That should be me. Eleanor keeps on teaching, and we're keeping the newspaper. She definitely tries to bring out the teaching in people. The people are curious.

[What does she teach people?]

She's teaching the people they can do their own things. 

[How do the people feel?]

They feel good. The people are ready. They now appreciate their education. They better take the whole damn thing in there.