The Golden Rule Will Always Be Good

People Grow Apart, And Sometimes, There Nothing Anyone Can Do About It.

I Take A Slow Sip Of Lukewarm Coffee, Reopen The Book, And Read The Words Scribbled In Red Ink Near The Top: Everyone Needs An Olly-olly-oxen-free.

I Want To Look Back. To Look Over My Shoulder And See The Stop Sign With Huge Reflective Letters, Pleading With Hannah. Stop!

And What If In The Future We're At War Again, Or We Still Haven't Elected A Non-white Or Non-male President, Or The Rolling Stones Are Still Dragging Their Tired Old Butts On Stage? That Would Depress Me Way Too Much.

A Lot Of Authors See Their Book Being Banned Or Challenged As A Badge Of Honor. But For Me, It's Nothing But Frustrating And Upsetting. I Hear From Readers That My Work Encouraged Them To Ask For Help Or Reach Out To Someone About The Situation They're In. When You Hear Stories Like That On A Daily Basis And Then Hear Adults Call For Your Work To Be Banned, It's Proof Of Why The Stigma Around These Issues Is So Dangerous.