Looking back, it shouldnt have surprised me that such “dark” words are excluded from our culture, but at the time it did. I wish I hadn’t asked, but not because I don’t like to know. I love knowing things; random facts interest me. I like knowing that there are 93 million miles between us and sun, and that le manchot means penguin in french, but it also means the one-armed one. But of course, my love of knowledge sets me apart as much as my looks.

I regret asking my “mother” the meaning of adultry, etcetera, because of the look she gave me as she struggled through the definitions.

While our people smile constantly in public and avoid anything verging on meaningful conversation to deter conflict, in private they aren’t always of the same cheerful disposition. In the privacy of your own home, you don’t have to keep up with the Jones’. If I had asked anywhere but in our kitchen, she would have silenced me, but because no one else was around she explained, but hasnt looked at me the same since.