Delaria

“Men always want to come inside you so that if they give you a sickness or a baby, you are bound to them forever. People will tell you men don’t like commitment and the first rule is that you shouldn’t believe them. Remember, sickness or a baby. Neither of which they’ll take care of.”
― Olivia Gatwood, Life of the Party

“The truth is: It is a privilege to have your body looked for.”
― Olivia Gatwood, Life of the Party

“If you have a son, how will you love him?
She is pacing the living room,
while the Thanksgiving Day Parade
plays behind her, a montage of inflated
cartoon bodies, floating slow
down 6th Avenue, smiles
painted onto their faces.

I consider not responding.
I consider explaining that I can love him and not trust him. I consider saying that I won’t
love him at all. Just to scare her. Instead, I say,

If I am ever murdered, like,
body found in a ditch, mouth
stuffed with dirt, stocking
around my neck, identified
by my toenails, please don’t go
looking for a guilty woman.

("My Grandmother Asks Why I Don't Trust Men")”
― Olivia Gatwood, Life of the Party

“what does it mean to have an instinct? does it just mean I was born to avoid a certain breed of death?”
― Olivia Gatwood, Life of the Party