The man saw the aunt as a young woman, held in the same way by her mother and aunts, adored and cossetted and safe and secure in her position in the world.
I've spent long hours trying to untangle unknown grief, the world's and mine, without ever really understanding that it is not meant to be untangled but explored and experienced. Studied and seen. My heart will be both soothed and scalded, each emotion has a place.
Sometimes it seems easier to keep holding on because these things and relationships feel safe and familiar even when they’re very painful to us. But how can you receive something new when your hands are full with holding on to these old memories? There comes a time when you, carefully, need to ...
I later learned that editing is not insulting, but the mark of a perseverant artist. But knowing that I treasured my own first drafts really mimics how I feel about myself as a person.
I will teach my daughter to have faith in many things.
Let her know that God is not a requirement.
I will teach her that the gender of whom she loves is up to her,
And that she decides whom she spends her life with.