Letters to the 43
perzine, Zo Watt, [email protected], IG: @zo.watt , $3
When I was in my twenties, if I met you and we became friends, we would play “The Ex Game,” in which we would go back and forth telling each other stories about the people we had loved, dated and/or messed around with. That is pretty much the same set up as this zine, albeit one-sided. But, if you really like, I’m sure you can contact Zo and tell her about your own relationship history.
In this instalment, we only get 10 relationship stories of the promised 43, but it’s a good start. I think every boy and girl turning 13 should be given a copy of Letters to the 43. As these kids enter puberty, their minds are full of all sorts of expectations that they will never experience. LTT43 can brace the next generation for the approaching confirmation that love and sex can be devastatingly disappointing.
These poor kids think they’re headed for unions of uncomplicated and entertaining drama, also true love. Maybe they’ll get that, but maybe, like Zo, they’ll get a partner that cuts them off from the world, a text from an FWB that says you probably have an STI, or maybe you’ll pine and pursue someone for weeks after they assault you.
These are stories that I am so glad are being told. They are real, and it’s better if real stories prepare us and frame our perceptions of sex, infatuation and love.