You are allowed to exist without explanation even if you feel uninvited, unappreciated, and invisible. Never, ever let the world convince you that your struggles are invalid. And I’ll end with my absolute favorite quote from E. E. Cummings: “To be nobody-but-yourself—in a world which is doing its best, night and day, to make you everybody else—mean

Her own moon that would rise and fall with her, keeping her equilibrium, loving her unconditionally. That was true love. Not this. That was how the universe worked. A perpetual state of balance. Ragnar was a sun to her sun.

“Being different doesn’t mean there’s something wrong with you or that you aren’t perfect as you are. It simply means getting special support so you can live your best life.”

Hearing those familiar intonations was enough to excite Kemi and conjure up memories of her own family. She eavesdropped, soaking up the cultural source that was her lifeline.

Brittany was realizing Jonny didn’t like her thinking too much. She made him nervous whenever she came asking questions he couldn’t answer or wasn’t ready to. He often responded with silence.

“How often do you speak to your family?” she asked Godwin. “Every day,” Godwin responded with a tone that questioned her judgment for asking him such an obvious question. “I’m actually considering moving my wife and children to England for better opportunities.” Kemi felt ashamed for letting weeks pass between her own calls back to her family.

“Privilege comes in levels, Brit,” he continued. “You have the privilege he has given you. But you will never have the privilege he has just because he breathes.”

“Silence is poison, Muna,” Khadiija continued. “Silence is a slow, poisonous death.”

Belonging and acceptance were curious siblings indeed, Muna often thought. These feelings made men grovel. One could try to belong for decades without ever fully being accepted.