Discussion questions
1. Amy Griffin decided to move forward for much of her adult life and never stopped looking back. Do you think she ultimately motivated her to revisit her past and then tell her story? Talk about the courage you need to stand up to the past and share it with the world. Have you ever decided to leak something about yourself that you once felt impossible to share?
2. Amy is a student of her small Texas town star and after she arrives in New York, she becomes a businessman who reaches altitude. Talk about ambition as a traumatic response. Do you think Amy believed she could overtake (and outrun) her past? How can “The Tell” serve as a reminder that people who are thought to have “everything” are not always visible?
3. The physical therapist told Amy: “Your body sometimes says you don’t want to hear.” How did her body message manifest? What message has your body sent over the years? Why is it difficult to hear the messages your body sends?
4. John supports Amy’s decision to try therapy with Olivia, and he works to keep his family’s life floating at home while it takes time to process what he discovers. However, John understands his own limitations and tells Amy when he needs to find external support so that he can become her husband. How does he know when to place this boundary? How does Amy respond to this? Have you ever had to put difficult boundaries to maintain a relationship?
5. Would you like to try psychedelic assistive therapy? Why or why?
6. “I had to find evidence to confirm my memory,” Amy wrote in her diary. Why do you think Amy needs someone else to make sure she knows she is true?
7. What did you learn from “The Tell” and the sessions with Amy and Lauren about how memory works? For example, consider the distinction between memory storage and memory recall. What did you think was the most surprising?
8. “My daughters were asking us to join us and our relationships in ways I couldn’t.” Do both Amy’s children cause her memories and help her heal?
9. Over the years, Amy remembers so many details about the abuse, not the abuse itself. She saw the clues, but there was no full picture of her trauma. How did “The Tell” take into consideration and rethink the events and memories of your own life into consideration for you? Is there anything you don’t remember or may not remember? Have you ever been surprised when you “unlock” an unexpected memory?
10. Amy begins to feel that justice will bring her closure. How did Paul’s story help to Amy and unfortunately was it unusual? How does that affect her when she realizes that her story doesn’t have such tidy or satisfying results?
11. What was it like to tell her parents? Have you ever had to have a difficult conversation with your parents about your childhood? What did you learn about yourself and them through that conversation?
12. Amy grew up in traditional patriarchal Texan culture. Children were expected to respect and obey the elders. How does our childhood environment and the culture we were raised inform the choices of adults? How can our background affect what we can and cannot do in our personal history?
13. Amy recognizes the resources and time that she was able to devote herself to both her healing and pursuing her legal case. How do the situations of abuse and survival differ for people who do not have the same resources? How will financial and class privileges separate you from pain or not?
14. At the beginning of her journey, Amy is unable to “tell” her secrets to herself. Finally, she realized that “talking is medicine.” How does talking about her help Amy heal?
15. How does Amy give herself the closure she needs?
16. Who do you think wrote the postcard? Is the writer’s identity important?
17. What was the biggest point from “The Tell”?
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