A soul cannot live without loving. It must have something to love, for it was created to love.
St. Catherine Of SienaRead
They will say I smoked cigarettes and marijuana, cursed hoarse as a crow in all my languages, and loved morphine and Demerol and tequila and pulque, women and men. I will shrug my illusion of shoulders and answer that I am a water woman, not a vessel, not something you can sail or charter. I am instead the tributary, the river, the fluid source, and the sea itself. I am all her rainy implications. And what do you, with your rusted compass, know of love?
Interpretation
What this quote means
This quote explores the complex and fluid nature of identity and love, emphasizing that one cannot be confined or categorized.
In this quote, Kate Braverman reflects on the multifaceted nature of her experiences and identity, asserting that she is not merely a collection of labels or experiences, but rather a dynamic and flowing entity. By comparing herself to natural water forms, she conveys the idea that love and identity are expansive and cannot be restricted by societal norms or expectations. The reference to a 'rusted compass' suggests a critique of conventional understanding of love, implying that true love transcends rigid definitions and limitations.
Themes
LoveIdentityFluidExperienceSelf
In practice
Example use cases
This quote could be used in a discussion about the nature of love and identity at a self-help seminar.
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Just like that. Gone forever. They will not grow old together. They will never live on a beach by the sea, their hair turned white, dancing in a living room to Billie Holiday or Nat Cole. They will not enter a New York club at midnight and show the poor hip-hop fools how to dance. They will not chuckle together over the endless folly of the world, its vanities and stupid ambitions. They will not hug each other in any chilly New York dawn. Oh, Mary Lou. My baby. My love.
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