The Magic of Found Objects

by Maddie Dawson

You’re creating your reality, and the words you tell yourself, the story you believe about yourself, is the way things are going to turn out for you. You have to fill your heart with love for yourself, Phronsie. That is the first and most important thing you have to do. Everything you want will follow from that.”

takes character to live with the imperfect facts of your life and to change the things you can change, and to be willing to live with the things you can’t do anything about.

We go out on the dance floor, and this time he takes my hand like it’s just a perfectly natural thing to do, the most normal thing in the world. People are pouring out onto the dance floor, and I let myself be swept into the music, which is loud and Motown. Familiar as my own name. Words everyone knows. Everyone’s smiling and some people are singing along. Rock music is the great equalizer. Like Woodstock was, maybe. Bringing people together who had no idea there were so many of them out there who were all part of the same culture. I wonder if something like that could ever happen again.

Also I don’t know if you’ve ever really thought about this, but the more fun you have, the better you are at life.

“Just take your place in the world with as much grace and gratitude as you can muster and try to see the best in us.”