Peter DiMauro

“He has gone to the top of Specimen on the last day of his life, Rick suggested, because that was where he and 42 had gone together countless times - to mark a particular tree that served as a kind of sentry post along the edge of the Druids’ territory. Of course, she wasn't there that summer day when 21 visited the spot alone. But her scent was still present, Rick reminded his audience, which would have offered 21 at least a glimmer of hope at finding his missing mate. “Now the question at that moment would be: Can a wolf in the wild experience what we know as joy and happiness?” Rick said, his voice breaking noticeably. “And my answer is yes.”
― Nate Blakeslee, American Wolf

“This weekend, I'm going to drive down to Grandmama's house in Central Mississippi. I'm going to bring my computer. I'm going to ask her to sit next to me while I finish this essay about her artistic rituals of labor vis-á-vis OutKast. I'm going to play ATLiens and Aquemini on her couch while finishing the piece, and think of every conceivable way to thank her for her stank, and for her freshness. I'm going to tell Grandmama that because of her, I know what it's like to be loved responsibly. I'm going to tell her that her love helped me listen, remember, and imagine when I never wanted to listen, remember, or imagine again. I'm going to read the last paragraph of this piece to her, and when Grandmama hugs my neck, I'm going to tell her that when no one in the world believed I was a beautiful Southern Black boy, she believed. I'n going to tell Grandmama that her belief is the only reason I'm still alive, that belief in Black Southern love is why we work.”
― Kiese Laymon, How to Slowly Kill Yourself and Others in America

“This was the great shame of Bethel: complacency and complicity that were responsible for the deaths of generations of girls. It was the sickness that placed the pride of men before the innocents they were sworn to protect. It was a structure that exploited the weakest among them for the benefit of those born to power.”
― Alexis Henderson, The Year of the Witching