Diane Kumorkavich

“This isn’t a story about survival because a lot of my pieces have already been lost. Some rebirth has occurred, so I cannot say I’ve survived when I’m not the same person who started this journey.”
― Ashley Marie Berry, Separate Things: A Memoir

“That feeling will come again—that feeling of not being enough for you. And I’ll sweep it up in me and then let it sweep out. I’ll try not to own it. I’ll not bear its heaviness.”
― Ashley Marie Berry, Separate Things: A Memoir

“There is no part of me that isn't in here.

I'm inviting you in.
Into my thoughts, into my compulsions, into my voice.

This is a raw but inviting look into a world I wasn't built for, and that wasn't built for me.

My diagnosis makes some people uncomfortable. These people make me feel uncomfortable.

I separate the 'us' who are touched by this light, and 'the others' who have yet to understand why we are separate.

I hope this book will bridge the gap.”
― Ashley Marie Berry, Separate Things: A Memoir

“I fell in love with this self that was built from
every positive thought I had between the shameful ones. She came from every bright light I’d noticed before it was overshadowed with darkness. I hoarded these delicate bits of time, waiting for when they could radiate again.”
― Ashley Marie Berry