Carina

"They write movies around characters like you . . . and sometimes you're the hero. It's a compliment."

I know I'm not a piece of shit.

For the first time in my life, I realize this.

Your negativity means nothing to me.

What makes a person specific, and why do they become that?

Family

Sometimes I wish I had siblings to help carry the weight when I get tired.

This is a burden someone with brothers and sisters will never understand. 

Glass Ceilings

It turns out they were fragile after all.

Kim

"If I ever get divorced . . . "

You let that statement linger in the air between us, an open invitation for future possibilities.

I've heard similar sentiments from numerous married women over the years - at least five come to mind as I write this - and I've never figured out the "right" response to give under the circumstances.

"I'll be looking forward to it. Give me a call when your marriage dissolves."

If our (hypothetical) children ever ask, we'll tell them we met while reading to the blind or building school houses for impoverished children in South America. Yeah, that sounds good.

Alana

You were chasing a would-be suicide bomber across multiple lanes of traffic, running in combat boots too big for your feet. As the runway tapered off I watched you slip and fall on loose gravel, landing hard on your stomach. 

I ran as fast as I could to get to you. Afraid to move you because of your pregnancy, I pulled you close and held you tight, yelling for my partner to call for an ambulance. He ran away to make the call and we were alone in the intersection, cars speeding by us on both sides.

"My baby . . . " you whispered between sobs. "I was just getting used to the idea of becoming a mother."

The way you slipped and fell forward on the pavement, coupled with the previous miscarriage you and Vincent had already weathered . . . I was not optimistic that this baby would survive the fall.

A part of me wondered if your marriage would survive a second miscarriage; another part wondered if I'd be willing to take your husband's place.