Yijun Liu > Yijun's Quotes

“It was as if I were writing letters to hold together the pieces of my crumbling life.”
― Haruki Murakami, Norwegian Wood

“I wondered if she was trying to convey something to me, something she could not put into words - something prior to words that she could not grasp within herself and which therefore had no hope of ever turning into words.”
― Haruki Murakami, Norwegian Wood

“incessant, adj.

The doubts. You had to save me from my constant doubts. That deep-seeded feeling that I wasn't good enough for anything I was a fake at my job I wasn't your equal my friends would forget me if I moved away for a month. It wasn't as easy as hearing voices nobody was telling me this. It was just something I knew. Everyone else was playing along but I was sure that one day they would all stop.”
― David Levithan, The Lover's Dictionary

“For I have never wanted a lover, but I have always wanted to love, and to be loved.”
― David Levithan, The Lover's Dictionary

“Neophyte, n.

There are millions upon millions of people who have been through this before-- why is it that no one can give my good advice?”
― David Levithan, The Lover's Dictionary

“What did it matter to me? Did I think that by making you rational about one thing, I could make you rational about everything? Maybe. Or maybe I just wanted to save you from your fears”
― David Levithan, The Lover's Dictionary

“Breathing, n
You had asthma as a child, had to carry around an inhaler. But when you grew older, it went away. You could run for miles and it was fine.
Sometimes I worry that this is happening to me in reverse. The older I get, the more I lose my ability to breathe.”
― David Levithan, The Lover's Dictionary

“I will be the one to leave you.”
― David Levithan, The Lover's Dictionary

“It's the way you say thank you like you're genuinely thankful. I have never met anyone else who does that on a regular basis.”
― David Levithan, The Lover's Dictionary

“There are times when I'm alone and I think, This is it. This is actually the natural state. All I need are my thoughts and my small acts of creation and my ability to go or do whatever I want to go or do. I am myself, and that is the point. Pairing is a social construction. It is by no means necessary for everyone to do it. Maybe I'm better like this. Maybe I could live my life in my own world, and then simply leave it when it's time to go.”
― David Levithan, The Lover's Dictionary

“But in the end it's only a passing thing, this shadow; even darkness must pass.”
― J.R.R. Tolkien, The Lord of the Rings

“Don’t adventures ever have an end? I suppose not. Someone else always has to carry on the story.”
― J.R.R. Tolkien, The Lord of the Rings

“The future was uncertain, absolutely, and there were many hurdles, twists, and turns to come, but as long as I kept moving forward, one foot in front of the other, the voices of fear and shame, the messages from those who wanted me to believe that I wasn't good enough, would be stilled.”
― Chris Gardner, The Pursuit of Happyness

“Others may question your credentials, your papers, your degrees. Others may look for all kinds of ways to diminish your worth. But what is inside you no one can take from you or tarnish. This is your worth, who you really are, your degree that can go with you wherever you go, that you bring with you the moment you come into a room, that can't be manipulated or shaken. Without that sense of self, no amount of paper, no pedigree, and no credentials can make you legit. No matter what, you have to feel legit inside first.”
― Chris Gardner, The Pursuit of Happyness

“Still a dreamer, yet more of a realist than ever before, I knew this was my time to sail. On the horizon I saw the shining future, as before. The difference now was that I felt the wind at my back. I was ready.”
― Chris Gardner, The Pursuit of Happyness