Your First Kiss Is Destiny Knocking.

I Was Trying To Prove To Them And To Myself That I Was Still Who I Had Always Been. I Was Beautiful, If Fat. I Was Smart, If Loud. I Was Good, If Ruined.

He Tunneled Into Stories Where Weak Men Changed Into Strong Half-animals Or Used Eye Beams Or Magic Hammers To Power Through Steel Or Climb Up The Sides Of Skyscrapers. He Was The Hulk When Angry And Spidey The Rest Of The Time. When He Felt His Heart Hurt He Turned Into Something Stronger Than A Little Boy, And He Grew Up This Way. A Heart That Flashed From Heart To Stone, Heart To Stone. As I Watched I Thought Of What Grandma Lynn Liked To Say When Lindsey And I Rolled Our Eyes Or Grimaced Behind Her Back. "watch Out What Faces You Make. You'll Freeze That Way.

The Sun Came Through The Branches Of The Tree Above Her, And Ruth Looked Up Past Them. "i Think She Listens," She Said, Too Softly To Be Heard.

I Dont Think Ignorance Is A Way That You Gain Distance On Something.

The Stains Could Be Seen Only In The Sunlight, So Ruth Was Never Really Aware Of Them Until Later, When She Would Stop At An Outdoor Cafe For A Cup Of Coffee, And Look Down At Her Skirt And See The Dark Traces Of Spilled Vodka Or Whiskey. The Alcohol Had The Effect Of Making The Black Cloth Blacker. This Amused Her; She Had Noted In Her Journal: 'booze Affects Material As It Does People'.