How to Explain Yourself to Wolves
By Jayme VolstadLiterary Atlas & Field Journal
Return to Atlas
Section VIII // Filing Repository

The Archive of Things I Should Have Said

A physical catalog of unsaid sentences, filed by weight, category, and date of silence.

Total Slips Filed: 15
Brass Index Drawers15 items
SLIP #017Things I Knew

I did not misunderstand you.

SLIP #023Things I Knew

You knew what I meant.

SLIP #031Things I Knew

The rules only changed when it was my turn to roll.

SLIP #042Boundaries

That hurt me even if you did not intend it to.

SLIP #058Boundaries

I am not going to manage your reaction to my limit.

SLIP #064Boundaries

My quiet is not an invitation to negotiate.

SLIP #079Things I Said Too Late

I should have left the table three years ago.

SLIP #088Things I Said Too Late

You did not make me smaller; I made myself smaller to fit through your door.

SLIP #095Things I Said Too Late

I was not difficult. I was just no longer convenient.

SLIP #103Things I Could Not Say

I was terrified that if I stopped apologizing, you would realize you had never liked me at all.

SLIP #112Things I Could Not Say

I stayed because leaving required an energy I had spent on keeping you steady.

SLIP #118Things I Could Not Say

The cruelty was not an accident; it was the mechanism.

SLIP #129Things I No Longer Need to Explain

Why I took off the red coat.

SLIP #137Things I No Longer Need to Explain

Where I went when the storm started.

SLIP #144Things I No Longer Need to Explain

The wolves were never waiting for an apology.

DRAWER #017
Category: Things I KnewDATE OF SILENCE: AUTUMN // UNCONCEDED

I did not misunderstand you.

Archivist’s Notation:

Filing stamp: Confirmed on the first hearing.

FILED UNDER NON-NEGOTIABLE
THE ARCHIVE IS CLOSED ON MONDAYS