I peeled the skin off a grape in slippery little triangles, and I understood then that I would be undressing every item of food I could because my clothes would be staying on.

I want to be violated by insight.

It was like we were exchanging codes, on how to be a father and a daughter, like we'd read about it in a manual, translated from another language, and were doing our best with what we could understand.

It seemed to happen in springs, the revealing of things.

I like birthday cake. It's so symbolic. It's a tempting symbol to load with something more complicated than just 'Happy birthday!' because it's this emblem of childhood and a happy day.

I felt the crumpled paper that had taken the place of my lungs expand as if released from a fist.

My eyelids are my own private cave, he murmured. That I can go to anytime I want.