We're Told That Men Are Strong &

What Stays With Me Most Is A General Sense Of Loss, Unease, And Longing For The Past That Cannot Be Relieved.

In That Moment I Understood That The Cruelest Words In The Universe Are If Only.

And Often It Would Be A Woman Who Was In Her 70s Or 80s Who Would Win The Beauty Contest, Because Bound Feet Never Age.

Mama Used To Tell Us A Story About A Cicada Sitting High In A Tree. It Chirps And Drinks In Dew, Oblivious To The Praying Mantis Behind It. The Mantis Arches Up Its Front Leg To Stab The Cicada, But It Doesn't Know An Oriole Perches Behind It. The Bird Stretches Out Its Neck To Snap Up The Mantis For A Midday Meal, But Its Unaware Of The Boy Who's Come Into The Garden With A Net. Three Creatures—the Cicada, The Mantis And The Oriole—all Coveted Gains Without Being Aware Of The Greater And Inescapable Danger That Was Coming.

Having A Baby Is Painful In Order To Show How Serious A Thing Life Is.