Beyond the Bright Sea

by Lauren Wolk

When I did that and everything began to unravel, a seam opened up and let in some light, which helped me see my life more clearly, but it also made me want to close my eyes, sometimes, instead.

But when I learned from Miss Maggie that coal squeezed by the weight of the world turned to diamonds, I looked at it differently and wondered what other rough and simple stuff held the promise of something rare.

“But some people let fear set its hook in them, so it’s hard to pull out.”

an island is one thing when a man has a boat, quite another when he doesn’t.”

was learning that some things take time, and worrying wouldn’t change that.

I found it odd how the same people who followed these unwritten rules sometimes ignored the ones spelled out in their sacred pages.

“People don’t want much until they have plenty, and then they want more and more.”