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To my daughter I will say, ‘when the men come, set yourself on fire.’

Warsan Shire

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Warsan Shire
Age: 36
Born: 1988
Born: January 1
Poet
Writer
Republic of Kenya
Daughter
Fire
Come
Men

More quotes by Warsan Shire

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Make love like you have no secrets like you've never been left never been hurt like the world don't owe you a single wretched thing.
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Make peace with your body, it's not manmade, there are no flaws, there are no mistakes.
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At the end of the day, it isn’t where I came from. Maybe home is somewhere I’m going and never have been before.
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Sad people have the gift of time, while the world dizzies everyone else they remain stagnant, their bodies refusing to follow pace with the universe. With these kind of people everything aches for too long, everything moves without rush, wounds are always wet.
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Give your daughters difficult names. Give your daughters names that command the full use of the tongue. My name makes you want to tell me the truth. My name doesn't allow me to trust anyone that cannot pronounce it right.
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Every mouth you’ve ever kissed was just practice. All the bodies you’ve ever undressed and ploughed in to were preparing you for me. I don’t mind tasting them in the memory of your mouth. Was it a long journey? Did it take you long to find me? You’re here now, welcome home.
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Mother says there are locked rooms inside all women, kitchen of love, bedroom of grief, bathroom of apathy. Sometimes, the men, they come with keys, and sometimes the men, they come with hammers.
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I tore up and ate my own passport in an airport hotel once. I'm bloated with language I can’t afford to forget.
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When I love, I love: wholly, thoroughly, completely, drowning in everything. Every glance can be a conversation, eyes just playing and saying what needs to be said. Silence is loud, and the air becomes heavy. I want you. I want all of you.
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My alone feels so good, I'll only have you if you're sweeter than my solitude.
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Later that night, I held an atlas on my lap, ran my fingers across the whole world, and whispered, ‘where does it hurt?’ It answered, everywhere, everywhere, everywhere.
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You can't make homes out of human beings.
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I belong deeply to myself.
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It's not my responsibility to be beautiful. I'm not alive for that purpose. My existence is not about how desirable you find me.
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Your mouth is a lonely place but I keep coming back.
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Don't assume, ask. Be kind. Tell the truth. Don't say anything you can't stand behind fully. Have integrity. Tell people how you feel.
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I’m overwhelmed. My biggest downfall is my brightest blessing, I feel too much, all the time. Ya Allah, if it’ll keep my heart soft, break my heart every day.
Warsan Shire
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Apathy is the same as war, it all kills you, she says. Slow like cancer in the breast or fast like a machete in the neck.
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I won't glorify or romanticise heartbreak, for me it was a kind of death and I was forced to keep living.
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My heart is a flower blossoming out of my mouth.
Warsan Shire