Bananapants

by Penny Reid

“I’d rather be hated for who I am than loved for who I am not.” — Kurt Cobain, Attributed

“Someone has to stand still for you to love them. My choices are always on the run.” — Carrie Fisher, The Princess Diarist

named three colors: white couch, brass lamp, red blanket. I named three sounds: dishes clinking, low unseen voices, a door opening. I inhaled and named three smells: lemon wood polish, baked beans, the roses in my hand. The 3-3-3 rule is a mindfulness technique to help cope with anxiety, one I’ve used since I was a kid.

There’s a difference between being responsible and being a whiny little bitch who’s afraid of making a single fucking mistake and therefore walks around feeling all superior because they never did anything to hurt nobody. Guess what, they probably never did anything to help nobody either. But they probably think those two things are the same.”

“Never go in against a Sicilian when death is on the line!” — The Princess Bride (1987)

“Everyone is upset about the lack of dragons, gorgeous. We don’t talk about it like you do.”

“Why do you think that is?” I glanced at him. “Why don’t more people openly discuss their dissatisfaction with the lack of dragons?”

It’s all weirdos, trying to do their best, and looking like fools until they meet that person who makes them feel exceptional instead of foolish.”

I said, grinning with so much cheese, France would’ve accepted me as an honorary citizen (because they have a lot of cheese).

“It’s all smoke and mirrors and pretending, honey,” she went on. “Everyone is in various stages of falling apart. All the time.” Stepping forward, she cupped my cheeks between her palms, like she used to do when I was little. “Some people are just better than others with their smoke and mirrors, and how often and how well they lie to others. And to themselves.”

“At the end of the day, we can endure much more than we think we can.” — Frida Kahlo, Attributed

“It’s a situation where there is no perfect answer. Everyone does the best they can and there’s no right answer, no easy solution, and sometimes everyone is various shades of wrong in retrospect. It’s just a bunch of people loving each other, trying their hardest, and hoping for the best.”