My Dear You
By Rachel Khong, first published in Tin House
A Chinese-American woman dies on her honeymoon from a crocodile attack, sending her to heaven and causing her to lose her memory of her husband and soulmate. In the afterlife, she must work to remember that which she left behind.
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A 30-year-old woman who recently died during her honeymoon is in heaven, selecting her new facial features. She wonders if she should still look Chinese in the afterlife. She had died from a crocodile attack on the first full day of her marriage with her soulmate, Adam. In heaven, time moves quickly, people get to choose their faces, and life is easier—but still, she cannot stop thinking of Adam. Because of the quick pace of time, she quickly loses details about those that she loves, until she can no longer envision her parents’ faces. To remember Adam, she writes his name down on a piece of paper and looks at it every day. One day, the piece of paper with Adam’s name on it is accidentally thrown away by a maid. The woman is sad, but her friend Heidi comforts her. Just as she forgets her old husband’s name, a man who recently died, also named Adam, enters heaven. Adam had died at the age of 86, and he’d left behind a wife and children. In heaven, he regains the form of a 33-year-old person, as does everyone. The woman and Adam date, and they enjoy each other’s company very much. But they break up. Adam remains kind to the woman. Now alone, the woman thinks to the day when she will meet her Adam in heaven. She hopes to write a letter to him.
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