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She never dared to argue with my father, who in our home was both a king and a god. His word was law; the rest of us, his pawns, did what we were told to do.
There are some things that you can never truly escape. Not really. Maybe that’s why, even now, she’s stuck in the past, long after everyone else has moved on.
A reminder that I once had a father.
More than anything, he hated that everything in his life served as a reminder of his failures. I don’t blame him. Maybe because I know what it’s like, to live a life so defined by want. That’s why I was able to recognize it in him—it was what I had been feeling for so long.
I’M REPUBLICAN BECAUSE WE CAN’T ALL BE ON WELFARE.
Swearing on your mother’s life is something so American, so white, that neither of us can truly understand it. In our culture, swearing on your mother’s life is probably one of the worst sins you can commit. What is there that’s more important than your mother, your father, or your grandparents? It doesn’t sound like George has ever heard of filial piety.
For the first time, I notice that his eyes are blue: a pale, icy blue that reminds me of the Niagara Falls, where my father took us on vacation six years ago. I don’t know why I didn’t notice them before.
but I’m lost in the crypt that contains our family’s memories.
Her tears dripped onto my hands, onto the carpet; I watched them fall and had the sudden realization that our roles had reversed. Somehow, I had become the mother and she the daughter.
Fate can bring you together, but it can just as easily tear you apart.
What is it like to live freely, to live a life untethered, without having to be responsible for everyone around you?
I want the crunch of cartilage in my mouth. I want the saltiness of blood on my tongue.
The only power he has is the power you are willing to give him, and you’ve given him nothing. Not a scrap. By the time you’re done with him, he’ll be begging for mercy. Who is he if he can’t control you? Is he even a man anymore? It will seem like a relief when you give him a hand, even if that hand is holding a blade. And when you take everything from him, you can say what these men say about us: He was asking for it. He was begging for it. He must have wanted it, since he didn’t fight back.
His quips about feminism are just showboating, an attempt to make himself appear better than other men. His shirts are stupid.
How do I explain to her that the home I miss isn’t a place? It’s a time when my life made sense. When things made sense.
Is this what it takes to make our fathers return to us?
It must be nice to be so assured of your safety that you don’t have to worry about being alone at night or getting in the wrong car.
It only cements in my mind the fact that everything I’ve done—and everything I’m going to do—is for their own good. If I don’t protect them, who will?
“I know that the plant is pretty, but poison is everywhere, even in the places where you least expect it.”
A fool and his eyes are easily parted.
Umma allowed the men in her life to control her, to tell her what to do, to make all the big decisions for her. Without them, she’s lost, adrift at sea.
