A. > A.'s Quotes

“To know and feel all this and not have the words to express it makes a human a grave of his own thoughts.”
― John Donne

“He that desires to print a book, should much more desire, to be a book.”
― John Donne

“I have wanted to kill myself a hundred times, but somehow I am still in love with life. This ridiculous weakness is perhaps one of our more stupid melancholy propensities, for is there anything more stupid than to be eager to go on carrying a burden which one would gladly throw away, to loathe one’s very being and yet to hold it fast, to fondle the snake that devours us until it has eaten our hearts away?”
― Voltaire, Candide, or, Optimism

“High high in the hills , high in a pine tree bed.
She's tracing the wind with that old hand, counting the clouds with that old chant,
Three geese in a flock
one flew east
one flew west
one flew over the cuckoo's nest”
― Ken Kesey, One Flew Over the Cuckoo’s Nest

“Other people will try to decide things for you, she says. They'll try to tell you who you are. Remember, no matter what they say, you're the only who really decides.”
― Robin Talley, Lies We Tell Ourselves

“We read to know we're not alone.”
― William Nicholson, Shadowlands: A Play

“A book is really like a lover. It arranges itself in your life in a way that is beautiful.”
― Maurice Sendak

“When I was learning to be a man, I wish that instead of the coaching I received to take up space, I had been taught to be respectful of space. To be ever conscious of and ever grateful to those whose sacred land I inhabit. To be mindful of the space and bodies of others, especially feminine bodies. To never presume that I am permetted to touch the body of another, no matter how queer space. To give up or create space when I am afforded more than others.”
― Vivek Shraya, I'm Afraid of Men.

“The only insult I've ever received in my adult life was when someone asked me, "Do you have a hobby?" A HOBBY?! DO I LOOK LIKE A FUCKING DABBLER?!”
― John Waters, Role Models

“When you believe in your own ability to do something, even something scary, it gives you an almost magic power. Confidence is magic. It can carry you through everything.”
― Ali Benjamin, The Thing About Jellyfish