Trauma

“I was— am— terrified of being owned. By a god or a man or a child or a place. By anyone or anything but myself.”

— Brenna Womer, from “Empire Blue,” Atypical Cells of Undetermined Significance

“Another secret of the universe: sometimes pain was like a storm that came out of nowhere. The clearest summer could end in a downpour. Could end in lightning and thunder.”

— Benjamin Alire Sáenz, Aristotle and Dante Discover the Secrets of the Universe

“It is hard to even describe what it’s like to have someone use your own revelation of suffering as a way to accuse you of being cruel.”

— Little Weirds, Jenny Slate

“I can be anything I want / Without my legs or my hair / Without my genes or my blood / With no name and no type of story / Where do I live? Tell me, where do I exist?”

— IMMATERIAL, Sophie