I am afraid of living, she said.
I am afraid it will hurt me.

Good, he said.
It will.
The world is frightening.
You should be frightened, he said.
The world will hurt you, and it will be worth it.

I'm afraid I will deserve it, she said.
And I'm afraid, she said, that I won't.

Nonsense, he said.
Utterly.

The world will hurt you.
People will hurt you, he said.
And when they do it,
They will do it because they will.

Is that all? she said.

No, he said.
That's everything.
That's all of it, he said.

The world will hurt you.
And the world will love you, he said.
People will love you, he said.
And when they do it,
They will do it because they will.

You have not earned this.
You have not deserved this.
This is living, he said.

How do I stop it? she said.

You don't, he said

You live afraid.
And you live desperate.
And you live happy.
And you live.

I am afraid of that, she said.

I know, he said
You should be.