...I would have traded
places with anyone raised on love,
but how would anyone raised on love
bear this death?
-Sharon Olds, from "Wonder"
I have written letters that were failures, but I have written few, I think, that are lies. Trying to reach a person means asking the same question over and over again: Is this the truth, or not? I begin this letter to you, then, in the Western tradition. If I understand it, the Western tradition is: Put your cards on the table.
This is easier, I think, when your life has been tipped over and poured out. Things matter less; there is the joy of being less polite, and of being more - not more - careful. We can say everything.
Although maybe not. Like in fishing? The lighter the line, the easier it is to get your lure down deep. Having delivered myself of the manly analogy, I see it to be not a failure, but a lie. How can I possibly put an end to this when it feels so good to pull sounds out of my body and show them to you.
This is easier, I think, when your life has been tipped over and poured out. Things matter less; there is the joy of being less polite, and of being more - not more - careful. We can say everything.
Although maybe not. Like in fishing? The lighter the line, the easier it is to get your lure down deep. Having delivered myself of the manly analogy, I see it to be not a failure, but a lie. How can I possibly put an end to this when it feels so good to pull sounds out of my body and show them to you.
-Amy Hemple, Tumble Home, from the Collected Stories, pg. 233
