You Will Never Be Satisfied

Dear Helga,

Why are you always in a state of discontent? Despite your education, friends, and quality of living, you seem to be constantly dissatisfied. Everything, even things you once describe as “perfect”, becomes annoying and unlikable. Is it your lack of connection to your past and family that precludes you from finding a true “home”? Or does the fact that your mixed race identity keep you from being accepted as either black or white leave you isolated, despite your ability to find a community in both America and Denmark? Money (and the things you can access with it) and attention from men seem to be the only things that distract you from these repressed feelings of discontent. Near the end of your story, you are able to find belonging and contentment with religion and a husband. While your situation is not perfect, you see your faith as a “protective coloring, shielding her from the cruel light of an unbearable reality”. However, in the last pages, you come to believe that religion is not for “the whole negro race” and that religion itself is a grand illusion that cannot solve your internal unrest. It seems as though the issues that plague you come from within. I hope you find a way to be at peace.

Sincerely,

Sophie Devincenti

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