[{"data":1,"prerenderedAt":-1},["ShallowReactive",2],{"$fCaUSQtO-1mN-HDaPIHqeyegr7gf1yEFgDZlsiDKEtNs":3,"$fx3AdvYF2zRs3FwJs8_QL3vQ6wbeAm401v8DdH6rtXDc":16},{"author":4,"tags":11},{"author_id":5,"author_name":6,"author_name_first_letter":7,"article_count":8,"bio":9,"short_bio":9,"slug":10,"image_url":9},7643,"Rivers Solomon","R",31,null,"rivers-solomon",[12],{"tag_id":13,"tag_name":14,"tag_count":15},138,"memories",5,{"quotes":17,"pagination":190},[18,26,37,58,80,96,118,139,155,176],{"id":19,"quote_text":20,"author_id":5,"source_id":21,"has_image":22,"author":23,"source":24,"quote_tag":25,"commentary":9},775071,"People do not know what to make of me, and this pleases me. I don't want to be scrutable.",2,false,{"id":5,"author_name":6,"slug":10,"author_name_first_letter":7,"article_count":8,"image_url":9},{},[],{"id":27,"quote_text":28,"author_id":5,"source_id":21,"has_image":22,"author":29,"source":30,"quote_tag":31,"commentary":9},755416,"The point is what you do when you don't have the details. Do you interrogate? Do you examine? Or do you settle for the obvious answer?",{"id":5,"author_name":6,"slug":10,"author_name_first_letter":7,"article_count":8,"image_url":9},{},[32],{"id":33,"tag":34},3601387,{"id":35,"tag_name":36},27407,"inquiry",{"id":38,"quote_text":39,"author_id":5,"source_id":21,"has_image":22,"author":40,"source":41,"quote_tag":42,"commentary":9},739338,"Conform or die. That was his motto. I am oddly doing bits of both, each half-assedly.",{"id":5,"author_name":6,"slug":10,"author_name_first_letter":7,"article_count":8,"image_url":9},{},[43,48,53],{"id":44,"tag":45},3562959,{"id":46,"tag_name":47},24,"life",{"id":49,"tag":50},3562958,{"id":51,"tag_name":52},119,"death",{"id":54,"tag":55},3562957,{"id":56,"tag_name":57},21135,"conforming",{"id":59,"quote_text":60,"author_id":5,"source_id":21,"has_image":22,"author":61,"source":62,"quote_tag":63,"commentary":79},631316,"You are an anomaly of a man,\" she said.\"Perhaps because I'm not a man at all.\" He sat closer now. The sheets wrinkled as he scooted himself toward her.\"Aye. You gender-malcontent. You otherling,\" she said...\"Me too. I am a boy and a girl and a witch all wrapped into one very strange, flimsy, indecisive body. Do you think my body couldn't decide what it wanted to be?\"\"I think it doesn't matter because we get to decide what our bodies are or are not,\" he answered.",{"id":5,"author_name":6,"slug":10,"author_name_first_letter":7,"article_count":8,"image_url":9},{},[64,69,74],{"id":65,"tag":66},3264808,{"id":67,"tag_name":68},5133,"gender",{"id":70,"tag":71},3264811,{"id":72,"tag_name":73},29726,"transgender",{"id":75,"tag":76},3264809,{"id":77,"tag_name":78},61853,"intersex","**The Backstory**\n\nThis poignant exchange is likely from the novel \"An Unkindness of Ghosts\" by Rivers Solomon, a renowned author known for her critically acclaimed works that often explore themes of identity, power, and resistance. The passage suggests a conversation between two characters navigating complex notions of self and body politics in a world where rigid categorizations are challenged. Without specific information on the exact origin of this quote within the novel, we can infer that it is situated in a narrative environment where fluidity of identity and bodily expression are central concerns.\n\n**The Hidden Insight**\n\nAt first glance, this exchange appears to be a conversation about nonconformity and self-expression. However, upon closer examination, it reveals a profound paradox: **the act of declaring oneself as an anomaly or otherling, rather than trying to fit into pre-defined categories, is actually a form of empowerment.** This paradox hinges on the tension between societal expectations of identity (male, female, binary) and individual experiences that defy these norms.\n\n**How to Use This**\n\nTo apply this mindset in modern times, one might adopt **the strategy of embracing ambiguity as a strength rather than an obstacle.** Rather than feeling pressured to conform or fit into pre-defined roles, individuals can choose to celebrate their complexities and nuances, recognizing that their true selves are often more multifaceted than any single label could contain.",{"id":81,"quote_text":82,"author_id":5,"source_id":21,"has_image":22,"author":83,"source":84,"quote_tag":85,"commentary":9},561024,"She's more delicate than you'd think,\" I say. She's glass. I'm glass. We're all glass, busted up, unrecognizable from our original selves. We walk around in fragments. It's a circus act.",{"id":5,"author_name":6,"slug":10,"author_name_first_letter":7,"article_count":8,"image_url":9},{},[86,91],{"id":87,"tag":88},3025606,{"id":89,"tag_name":90},3024,"brokenness",{"id":92,"tag":93},3025607,{"id":94,"tag_name":95},45530,"delicacy",{"id":97,"quote_text":98,"author_id":5,"source_id":21,"has_image":22,"author":99,"source":100,"quote_tag":101,"commentary":117},491550,"Then don't die.\" Yetu said... \"Stay with me and we will make a new thing. What's behind us, it is done.",{"id":5,"author_name":6,"slug":10,"author_name_first_letter":7,"article_count":8,"image_url":9},{},[102,107,112],{"id":103,"tag":104},2760471,{"id":105,"tag_name":106},1868,"complete",{"id":108,"tag":109},2760472,{"id":110,"tag_name":111},4376,"forgiveness",{"id":113,"tag":114},2760473,{"id":115,"tag_name":116},5384,"moving-on","**The Backstory**\nThis poignant quote is from Rivers Solomon's novel \"An Unkindness of Ghosts\", where Yetu, a character with immense power and resilience, offers words of wisdom in the face of unimaginable adversity. The era in which the author was writing was marked by themes of resistance, identity, and survival amidst oppression. In this context, Yetu's statement becomes a powerful commentary on the human experience.\n\n**The Hidden Insight**\nWhat underlies the surface-level message of perseverance is a deeper philosophical nuance: the notion that one's past, with all its struggles and traumas, is not something to be mourned or replayed, but rather something to be acknowledged as \"done\" - allowing for a liberation of energy towards creating anew. This paradoxical understanding allows individuals to release their emotional burden, rather than perpetuating cycles of rumination.\n\n**How to Use This**\nTo apply Yetu's wisdom in your own life, recognize that the past is not a source of stagnation, but an opportunity to harness your \"done\" experiences as fuel for growth. By letting go of what's behind you, you can free up mental and emotional resources to co-create something new with others, much like Yetu's vision for a brighter future.",{"id":119,"quote_text":120,"author_id":5,"source_id":21,"has_image":22,"author":121,"source":122,"quote_tag":123,"commentary":9},463904,"You are mean because inside you’re tiny. So tiny you cannot hold up the weight of your own body. You must inflate your ego just to fill the skin. You float around like a helium balloon. Blown up and bloated and gassy and empty.",{"id":5,"author_name":6,"slug":10,"author_name_first_letter":7,"article_count":8,"image_url":9},{},[124,129,134],{"id":125,"tag":126},2639320,{"id":127,"tag_name":128},1755,"bullying",{"id":130,"tag":131},2639322,{"id":132,"tag_name":133},8770,"egoism",{"id":135,"tag":136},2639323,{"id":137,"tag_name":138},26075,"put-downs",{"id":140,"quote_text":141,"author_id":5,"source_id":21,"has_image":22,"author":142,"source":143,"quote_tag":144,"commentary":9},457508,"Loving, worshipping, and bowing down to folks who harmed you was written into the genes of all animal creatures. To be alive meant to lust after connection, and better to have one with the enemy than with no one at all. A baby's fingers and mouth grasp on instinct.",{"id":5,"author_name":6,"slug":10,"author_name_first_letter":7,"article_count":8,"image_url":9},{},[145,150],{"id":146,"tag":147},2609232,{"id":148,"tag_name":149},1643,"loss",{"id":151,"tag":152},2609231,{"id":153,"tag_name":154},2138,"domestic-violence",{"id":156,"quote_text":157,"author_id":5,"source_id":21,"has_image":22,"author":158,"source":159,"quote_tag":160,"commentary":9},437259,"Without the History, she felt out of place and out of time. She missed being connected to all.But connection came with responsibility. Duty choked independence and freedom.",{"id":5,"author_name":6,"slug":10,"author_name_first_letter":7,"article_count":8,"image_url":9},{},[161,166,171],{"id":162,"tag":163},2513191,{"id":164,"tag_name":165},1410,"belonging",{"id":167,"tag":168},2513192,{"id":169,"tag_name":170},3061,"connection",{"id":172,"tag":173},2513193,{"id":174,"tag_name":175},3599,"duty",{"id":177,"quote_text":178,"author_id":5,"source_id":21,"has_image":22,"author":179,"source":180,"quote_tag":181,"commentary":9},431811,"What is belonging?” we ask. She says, “Where loneliness ends.",{"id":5,"author_name":6,"slug":10,"author_name_first_letter":7,"article_count":8,"image_url":9},{},[182,187],{"id":183,"tag":184},2482184,{"id":185,"tag_name":186},1381,"loneliness",{"id":188,"tag":189},2482183,{"id":164,"tag_name":165},{"currentPage":191,"totalPages":192,"totalItems":8,"itemsPerPage":193},1,4,10]