From Twinkle, with Love

by Sandhya Menon

I felt myself unwind as we walked, until my shoulders were shoulders again and not ear barricades.

I hold grudges a lot longer. What can I say? I’m like a cat. They can hold grudges for ten years.)

And then he tripped over nothing that I could see. I looked away and pretended I hadn’t noticed. We groundlings have to watch out for each other.

Not that she doesn’t have good ideas. Just that when she relies on me for execution, things generally don’t go as planned.

takotsubo cardiomyopathy

At least I wasn’t alone on Planet Doofus.

“Geeks are smart and talented and passionate,”

I’m softer inside than I look on the outside. Like a slightly stale jelly bean.

made me feel pathetic and unwanted all over again. Why was I so desperate for her friendship when she obviously didn’t value mine even a little?

felt damp and wilty.

“But . . . change is scary. What if I fail at what I’m trying to do?”

The melding of passion and fashion is the song of my people.

his insides match mine. I don’t know how else to explain it. I see what he’s made of, and it’s the stuff I’m made of too, I think.

What does Maddie not understand about how awful it feels to be made fun of for just existing?

(Even though most days I’d rather die than go outside to wheel the trash can to the curb.)

it was best not to give people an opportunity to act their worst.

Foolish heart. Desire=DOOM, how hard is it to learn that? It’s even an alliteration.)

First love is sweet and valuable, a blessed, if hazardous, condition.

I felt my new friend, anger, begin to bubble inside me.

never been super good at managing her negative emotions.

How do you come to terms with the fact that you can’t set something right? How do you begin to let go of the moon?

But sometimes? I just get tired of being strong.