She knew now that you could never outrun your memories. The place might be the trigger, but the past lived in her heart and in her mind.

Because I’m old enough to know that life is nothing but one big riddle with a question for an answer.

You are not defined by whoever happened to give you your DNA, Son. You’re defined by your choices. And the choices you make are yours. All yours.

Life is filled with questions, and love is the answer to every one of them.

I don’t know if you’re being smart or not, but I know that being smart doesn’t always lead to being happy. And I’d rather be happy than anything else.

I meant it,” he says.“You meant what?”“What I said in your apartment.”“You did?”He nods.We drop our cloths on the ground and hug each other. The path and the mountains and the entire world seem to slip away beneath us until only he and I remain. Then the sun rises over the peaks and warms my naked back. Of all the birthday gifts ever given in the history of the world, I can’t imagine one better than an embrace like this from your best friend.

You can say no if you dun’ wanna do it,” he finally says, “but I was thinkin’ maybe you could teach me to read.”“Shit, Jimmy, I just gave away my reading slate to Bill.”“I know it,” he says, “but I didn’t wanna read none of that stuff anyhow.”“Then what did you want to read?”“I wanna read those poems you said you might write.”I can’t help but smile so wide my cheeks hurt.“Okay, Jimmy. I’m going to write you a poem for your birthday, and then I’m going to teach you how to read it.

I forgive him and like water draining from the sand after a wave, the power he held over me disappears. A slow smile rises on my face.

Caterpillar dun' become butterfly-caterpillar die so butterfly can be. A new thing. We all must let ourselves die to be what we will be. But we cling to what we know.

We should trust people to be exactly what they have proven themselves to be, no more and no less.