I knew I’d follow him anywhere. When my sister used to talk about being in love, she said it felt like someone wrapping you inside of them. And that’s what I felt like now, like slowly I was being wrapped inside of him, inside his eyes, inside his voice, inside the way he talked about things.

Jaqueline Woodson, If You Come Softly

He loved October. Had always loved it. There was something sad and beautiful about it—the ending and beginning of things.

Jacqueline Woodson, If You Come Softly

I hope everyone realizes that aside from Crowley not being in heaven, Aziraphale will also not have anything else he likes.

There are no books in heaven. There's no tea or hot chocolate, no music, no crêpes or sushi. So not only does he lose the love of his life and has to operate without him, but he also isn't allowed any of his comfort things, all while I'm sure the angels are hostile against him (even if they pretend otherwise).

Aziraphale has nothing.

If You Come Softly Review

If You Come Softly by Jacqueline Woodson

CW: Death, Child Death, Police Shooting, Gun Violence, Racism, Discussion of Cheating, Discussion of Divorce, Trauma from Child Abandonment, Discussion of Child Abandonment, Tension Between Parents and Children, Discussion of Homophobia, Anxiety, Grief

4.5/5

This is the sort of book that schools should be including in their English curriculums. I would assign it to Middle or High School students. Somehow this book that should be considered a classic has gone under the radar. If You Come Softly by Jacqueline Woodson was published in 1998, but it is still very relevant today. It discusses race, religion, divorce, interracial relationships, difficult family relationships, and more. The book is poetic, approachable, and serious. I'm unsure how I've managed to go over 20 years without previously discovering it.

Based in Manhattan and Brooklyn, New York, this novella is about Ellie and 'Miah, two teens that are inexplicably drawn to each other. After a meet-cute in the halls of their prep-school, neither one can stop thinking of the other. At first they worry if they should be together because he's black and she's Jewish, but as months go by, they change each other's worlds forever.

Woodson is a black queer woman, a poetess, a mother, and a writer with many works under her belt. She is not Jewish, however. While I loved the choice for Ellie to be Jewish, her representation felt surface-level. She has a Star of David necklace, her hair is the stereotypical dark curls of white Jewish people, and holidays like Yom Kippur are mentioned, but I didn't get a good grasp on Ellie's relationship to her Judaism. Woodson did not negatively portray the religion nor did she include anything harmful, but I do wish she had done more with it.

The book is told in chapters that alternate between Ellie's and 'Miah's points of view. This is one of the things that makes the book into the should-be-classic that it is. Both kids have gone through a lot in their lives and are very rich (literally and figuratively) characters. 'Miah is the son of two successful artists, he's traveled the world, he's also witnessed his parents getting divorced, and he suffered from the death of his grandmother. Ellie comes from a large family and lives near Central Park, but she's been abandoned by her mother more than once and she rarely sees the rest of her family. Together 'Miah and Ellie face racism and what it can do to the love they share.

Anyone can likely guess the ending within the first few pages of the book, but I'm not going to spoil it, just in case. As I said before, this book is still very relevant today. There's light and dark to it. The reader will likely find themself pulled into the love story of 'Miah and Ellie and then wishing desperately for more time with the two of them. Despite my usual aversion to meet-cutes for not being realistic, this story feels very real and raw throughout. It doesn't shy away from trauma, the realities of racism and white privilege, or complicated family dynamics.

If you have never read or heard of this book, please put it on your list. It's short, powerful, and beautifully written. If you audiobook it, you may get a Forward by Woodson too. Have your tissues ready and give this a go. The only thing you'll regret is how little we've moved forward in society.

"Good job."

TAIKAN YOHOU (2023). Episode 3.

Oh wow. Today's entry is something else. I remembered the scene with the three vampire women was memorable, but the sheer tension of it, the way Jonathan describes being torn between desire and terror. An agony of delightful anticipation. No wonder people have been thirsting after vampires for decades, holy shit.

TK/Carlos + Touch

↳ 3.08 In the Unlikely Event of an Emergency

oh my god bernard gets batman and dick to help save tim in the last issue and everyone in the family takes that to mean that bear knows about their night jobs. except tim still thinks bear doesn't know. that bear being there was just a coincidence. he just tagged along to save him cause bear is such a standup guy! cue tim doing everything to hide his identity and the family looking at him like he's lost his mind because obviously bernard know tim?? he literally patches you up every night???? why would he not know??????

I was Not made to do taxes! I was made to get high and kiss another boy on the mouth and sit up in his lap all comfy and melt into him, kissing lazily at his neck and shoulder until I'm so foggy I start to fade in and out of consciousness against him and then I can just be his toy! That's what I was made for 💛

what if robin stays over at nancys house bc hers got split by the gay earthquake and she sets up on nancys floor paralleling johnathan s2 and then nancy pauses and says “could you just sleep up here?” anD ADJLFSAJFL

married firstprince au set 10ish years in the future where alex is a victim of an assassination attempt while him and henry are apart and the absolutely heartstopping, bone crushing fear when henry gets the call........ bonus points if they were in the middle of a fight at the time............. hold on. i'm throwing up on myself....

[2]

Coming out the gate swinging with Fai theorising that perhaps the time loop keeping these people away from the festival could even be a good thing, depending on the festival. 

INTERESTING. Love the dark implications. Big fan of the off screen horror that would imply being in a time loop forever would be PREFERABLE. 

And of course this comes from Fai, the survivor of so many tragedies that naturally it’s him that considers this. If you wanted you could even draw a parallel to Fai in the pit, trapped outside of time with no escape while his entire kingdom was slaughtered off screen. How interesting that, with that context, being in the pit is almost preferable to what would have happened if he hadn’t been. 

facing the fact that i am an adult and that if someone's behavior is bothering me and i would like them to change it, i am going to have to say that to them with my words, as opposed to just hiding in another room until they cease the behavior that they don't even know is bothering me.

hey remember when they sold this and how it was basically a very fine-grained sandpaper that would abrade and discolour your skin before it removed three hairs

https://www.tumblr.com/midnightsun-if/744523966618779648/this-might-just-be-me-not-understanding-how-close

You mention in this ask that Sloane wouldn’t smoke in front of us. Is there a reason for that? Or did they simply not feel like lighting their cigarette?

Smoking is extremely pungent for human noses to handle at times… It’s a bit worse for supernatural species that have heightened senses like Vampires. Sloane wouldn’t wish to subject an MC to that once you get closer with them, but they still feel relaxed if they have one in their mouth (it just won’t be lit).

hello today i am thinking abt jake’s hands and sitting in his lap