dialogue prompts from the vanishers by heidi julavitz.
what happened to me could never happen to you. tell yourself that.
they told me it was all in my head.
you were a mother to me when no one else wanted the job.
why be fair? nobody's been fair to me.
you are all subtlety and whispers.
we were all in some form of love with ____.
in other words, i made shit up.
you really do look kind of dead.
i heard you'd been sick for a long time.
there's nothing you could tell me about yourself that i don't already know.
it might be good for you. a disruption to the given system.
according to ___, i'm pathologically territorial.
anything can appear meaningful, at a backward glance.
we are not that sort of people.
most meaningful sentiments are cheapened by articulation.
how would i know, if you never told me?
i don't hide things from you on purpose.
i practice a no attachment policy. i am all business.
it's no big deal to be used by strangers. it's when you're used by people you know that life becomes unfathomable.
don't worry. your life is about to get better.
when you're ready to fight, give me a call.
what was your authorial intent?
i don't know if i'd call it a career. more of an inspired hobby.
we could be of mutual use to one another.
anything you divulge can be used against you.
i don't go where i'm not invited.
everyone has vulnerabilities. everyone has a weak spot.
when will you stare your sad life in the face?
revenge is not a compelling therapeutic goal.
hate is a form of emotional attachment.
maybe that's your problem. thinking it can be understood.
to forget is to respect the past.
you must have missed yourself.
your good intentions mean nothing.
the past is not past if it is always present.
memory is an act of murder.
i'm an expert at ruining people's lives. it's the one talent i possess.
you might learn things you wish you hadn't.
in some cases, a lie can be more valuable than the truth.
people can be remarkably thoughtless.
tell me why you don't love me.
anything i have of my mother's, i've had to steal.
i know better than to ask anything of you.
what does someone have to do for you to classify them as a monster?
your emotions are like water. they pour onto the people around you.
i tried to say i was sorry.
you're doomed to fail because you're too scared to try.
disappearing isn't very hard when no one is looking for you.
there's no need to be sorry. that's why i don't tell people.
to think i've been afraid of this. to think i've been afraid of you.
come. i'm not going to hurt you.
do you believe i saw a ____?
you really do look like shit.
were you trying not to be found?
i should lie to you, but i don't know you well enough.
to heal is to entomb forever the sickness.
i'm going home, wherever that is.
what good has running away ever done?
there is no knowing the truth from ____.
some people have no taste.
you deserve to have every ounce of marrow sucked from your bones by a hummingbird.
i am not too scared to try.
i want, more than anything, not to be alone.
i'm glad you understand. maybe you can make me understand.
you think i need a massage therapist? what i need is a gun.
it's important to remember that those commit murder are not making smart choices.
i am my mother's daughter. you should be worried.
we don't want people to talk more than they're already going to.
winter in new england is always coming.
sometimes you can resolve the unresolvable by accepting it as unresolvable.
so you're not looking to get better?
reasons are for the survivors. they do the dead no good.
'good health' means being unaware of one's health.
i'm sorry. i can't ever seem to tell you what you want to hear.
don't worry about what i want to hear. tell me what you want me to know.
what you want a person to know is often the last thing you want a person to know.
there's so much i can't tell you. no matter how much i want to.
people overestimate the value of expression.
blame is the cord you can never sever.
