Meddling, smug, stupid little..." "She likes me! They always play hard to get when they like me!" "No. You do not understand. I could not have done it because I can not read or write.

No. You know this is wrong and you want to feel better about it. You don't want to admit your as ruthless and monstrous as the demons you claim to hate.

Destiny is a tower of cards - nudge one just an inch and everything stacked on top comes crashing down. P116

But the universe isn't fair. Things don't work out neatly, pain, hardship and challenges divided equally among those best equipped to deal with them. Sometimes individuals have to be Atlases and carry the weight of the world alone. It shouldn't happen that way, but it does.

I know that no matter how lonely I get, I'll never be truly alone again. Our loved ones don't leave us. They just move out of sight for a while, and wait...in the shades.

I always knew there was power in the earth, but it must be much stronger than I imagined to resist such a relentless foe, day after day, night after night, year after year.

Better to die for my people in my own land than rule in another and suffer a lifetime of cowardly guilt.