When I'm In A Good Mood I

At About The Age Of Seven … I Wrote Exactly The Kinds Of Stories I Was Reading: All My Characters Were White And Blue-eyed, They Played In The Snow, They Ate Apples, And They Talked A Lot About The Weather: How Lovely It Was That The Sun Had Come Out. This Despite The Fact That I Lived In Nigeria; We Didn’t Have Snow, We Ate Mangoes, And We Never Talked About The Weather, Because There Was No Need To.

Each Time He Suggested They Get Married, She Said No. They Were Too Happy, Precariously So, And She Wanted To Guard That Bond; She Feared That Marriage Would Flatten It Into A Prosaic Partnership.

She Wanted To Ask Him Why They Were All Strangers Who Shared The Same Last Name.

How [stories] Are Told, Who Tells Them, When They’re Told, How Many Stories Are Told — Are Really Dependent On Power.

The Only Reason Race Matters Is Because Of Racism.