Sticks and stones may break my bones, but words will always hurt me. Bones mend and become actually stronger in the very place they were broken and where they have knitted up; mental wounds can grind and ooze for decades and be re-opened by the quietest whisper.

Stephen Fry (b. 1957) British actor, writer, comedian

Moab Is My Washpot, “Joining In,” ch. 4 (1997)
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