The Map of Salt and Stars

by Zeyn Joukhadar

“In times like these, it’s the small people who suffer.”

“In the earth, even the loveliest gems look rough and worthless. You might see the deepest indigo, but you see dirt too, and salt. But if you are patient, if you polish them with sandpaper and a rag—well, lots of things can become beautiful.”

“stories ease the pain of living, not dying. People always think dying is going to hurt. But it does not. It’s living that hurts us.”

I’m underwater before I know it, the shock of cold bruising my ears, blocking any other feeling. Everything is liquid. My skin is blue, my eyes, my ankles, my scalp. I am swallowed by sapphires, my shoulder blades sliced by frosted knives. I am crushed by every shade of blue I have ever seen: Ultramarine. Lapis. Navy. Night.