Mary

“You deserve safety.
You deserve protection.
You deserve love.
You deserve peace.
Breathe beloved.
Let's do it together. Right now!
Breathe in what I'm saying. Breathe out what you were thinking.
We tell the world they don't have to be anything but themselves to be worthy. And then we work until the stress is about to kill us to prove our worth. It's not just you. It’s not just us. It's the paradox of deeply melanated women. But right now I need you to hear me, because if we are still alive, then there is still hope to beat this thing.”
― Tarana Burke, You Are Your Best Thing: Vulnerability, Shame Resilience, and the Black Experience

“Ashley, you’re the only person who has to live in your skin, and wake up with the consequences of your choices. That’s why you can’t let other people make the big choices for you. You have to do what it feels right to do, and you can’t let anybody stop you.” I heard the stifled smile again. “Not even me.”
― Ashley C. Ford, Somebody's Daughter

“she’d lost her voice somewhere down in her chest, somewhere they couldn’t reach in and grab it.”
― Ashley C. Ford, Somebody's Daughter

“When you write about you and me? Just tell the truth. Your truth. Don’t worry about nobody’s feelings, especially not mine. You gotta be tough to tell your truth, but it’s the only thing worth doing next to loving somebody.”
― Ashley C. Ford, Somebody's Daughter