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He said I was hauntingly beautiful. and it was the most flattering thing that I had ever heard.

He said that he remembered me as a child because I was absolutely beautiful and I felt happiness in my chest because he remembered me.

He said that I was his favorite because I didn't play kissing tag with him like the other girls on the playground and even in first grade, I remember I began to love him.

He told me that we needed to stick together because that was the only way that we were going to make it and unfortunately, I doubted him.

He said I had nothing to be ashamed of because I had a perfect body and I remember feeling respected.

He told me that he loved me and my stomach got warm and my head filled with his emotion.

He swore to me that I was who he wanted above all others. My mind drew an empty, white blank.

He told me that I was special to God and I wanted to believe him.

He told me that he would never leave me. And I knew that it would never be true in my heart.

He told me to keep on keeping on because there were no answers for my questions.

He told me that it was nice to see me around again and I believed him, because he is a sincere person.

He said that I was his daughter and I felt safe.


lovers, best friends, a patriarch, my bishop, playmates, boyfriends, friends, someone elses' grandfather, a brother, my father: all the men, the many men in my life have said things to me that mean so much. How can these things mean so much? There is no way that I can write down everything that I remember anyway. I really only know how much the things they said impacted me, and I love them for that. I really love them for thinking so kindly and sincerely and for telling me what they did. In many ways, because we draw perception of ourselves based on our feedback from other people, thank you for helping me perceive myself.