Home > Author > Joya Goffney
1 " I wasted so much time living in fear that I thought I was comfortable, but I was writing in a cage that I didn't know existed, making lists of all my worries with no intent to do anything about them. "
― Joya Goffney , Excuse Me While I Ugly Cry
2 " There are enough closed doors and glass ceilings in the world. My comfort zone shouldn’t be one of them. "
3 " Cowards will do anything to feel safe, to feel in control. I used to be a coward, too, but the first brave thing I ever did was to stop being your friend. "
4 " I don’t know that. Fear is dangerous. Fear kills Black men.” “You think my dad would kill you?” I ask, meeting his gaze. “If your dad had a gun on him that day, I think I might be dead right now.” It hurts that he would fear for his life at my house. That a boy with skin as dark as mine doesn’t feel safe around my father. "
5 " She’s right. I am a warrior. I faced my to-do list. I fought for my freedom. I stopped allowing Destany and Gia to abuse me. I finally told my parents about Columbia. And now I’m here. I’m back at the place where I first found myself, finding more pieces of who I am. I dive in and let the cold swallow me up. "
6 " My smile widens. It grows and grows, like a plant that you water every day, like a scar that heals from patience, like the time you take to make sure you feel okay. So big and so bright. "
7 " I think to myself, If I can still move, what I’m gon’ be still for? Maybe because I’m too scared to move. Because if I move, people might see me. Because staying still is easier. "
8 " I feel like you see parts of me that I never knew existed. "
9 " ...Black people fill every table, either eating fried chicken and seasoned fries or waiting for their order to be ready. When the bell on the door chimes, fifty percent of their eyes fall on us. My skin crawls. I'm not used to being surrounded by people with my skin color. It makes me feel like they can see how other I am. But they can't, right? I could blend in if I tried. I could embrace the country in my accent. I could say ain't and y'all and the N-word and they wouldn't know a thing. "
10 " ..."My parents never warned me about the fact that the way I talk adn the way I act might lead people to call me white.""Yeah, I get that," Carter says. "My mom taught me about stereotypes, but she never taught me about the dangers of being the exception to stereotypes.""Being the exception to Black stereotypes automatically means that you're not as Black. "
11 " Listen to me, li’l girl.” She raises my chin to look in her eyes. “Home is not a place. Home is in here.” She pats her hand over her heart. She says, “Don’t you fear, I’m right here. "
12 " But we all know that none of our homes are perfect. And there's an understanding between us. "
13 " I hold threats in my eyes. Today is not the day to try me. "
14 " If you say that you’re not the type of person to feel comfortable in this situation, you’re telling yourself how to feel the next time. "
15 " Because I realized today that that’s what I did to you. I forced you to get naked before you were ready. And I’m disgusted at myself for doing that to you. "
16 " I'm scared," I whisper."Just do it."And without giving it a second thought, I press my lips against his. "
17 " She's not my type, like, at all.""What is your type?""You." He lets that word stir me up. Then he says, "Obviously. "
18 " What are we doing after the mall? I want more time with you.""Whatever you want. I want more time with you too. "
19 " Kissing Carter feels like finally. "
20 " My pulse quickens. Call? As in talk with our voices? With pauses and awkward silences and breathing and voices? My skin crawls with anticipation. "
