"We were taught what to think - not how. There is a difference, you know."
Black, Daniel (2022). Don't Cry for Me.
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This book is exceptional. It is a fictional letter from the author's father to the author, written shortly before his father's death. As the author and his father in reality never had the opportunity to express and talk through all their pain and hurt, the author imagined what his father might have written. He imagined how his father would have told him about his life, explaining how he became who he was and what he regretted.
This fictional letter is a powerful way of taking ownership of your story and filling in the gaps left by death and silence.
"[...] Daniel Black illuminates the lived experiences of Black fathers and queer sons, offering an authentic and ultimately hopeful portrait of reckoning and reconciliation."
"There are no do-overs in this life. Either you get it right or you wish you had."
"I thought that perhaps this little book was planting seeds of rebellion in her head, so I warned her against it. [...] I asked her to stop reading it altogether. "It's ruining our marriage," I said, "and making you hard to live with." Her eyes narrowed. "I gave up everything for you, [...]. And now you want my mind, too?" I said nothing. "Well, you can't have it." She walked away, mumbling, and read that book every night until she finished it. 🧵
