When Wally asks me to punch him in the stomach, I try not to hold back. I let it rip. I set my feet like he taught me to, draw back my fist, and deliver a blow to the spot he's pointing at—right above ... [+]
Wounds cannot stay--
Only as fading white lines of memory--
All is forgotten with
Time, who steals the importance
Of the sting of suffering.
If, one day, this anguish will mean
Nothing to me,
Let me stay in my agony
So I will never be deprived
Of the brilliant, all-consuming,
Purifying pain.