Patty Lauren > Patty Lauren's Quotes

“I do not particularly like the word 'work.' Human beings are the only animals who have to work, and I think that is the most ridiculous thing in the world. Other animals make their livings by living, but people work like crazy, thinking that they have to in order to stay alive. The bigger the job, the greater the challenge, the more wonderful they think it is. It would be good to give up that way of thinking and live an easy, comfortable life with plenty of free time. I think that the way animals live in the tropics, stepping outside in the morning and evening to see if there is something to eat, and taking a long nap in the afternoon, must be a wonderful life. For human beings, a life of such simplicity would be possible if one worked to produce directly his daily necessities. In such a life, work is not work as people generally think of it, but simply doing what needs to be done.”
― Masanobu Fukuoka, The One-Straw Revolution

“The greatest challenge in life is to be our own person and accept that being different is a blessing and not a curse. A person who knows who they are lives a simple life by eliminating from their orbit anything that does not align with his or her overriding purpose and values. A person must be selective with their time and energy because both elements of life are limited.”
― Kilroy J. Oldster, Dead Toad Scrolls

“I was rich, for there was nothing else that I needed or wanted.”
― Mark Warren, Two Winters in a Tipi

“People no longer live by sun and moon, by wind and stars, but by some slyly contrived conventions known as clocks and calendars.”
― Matthew Goldman, The Journals of Constant Waterman: Paddling, Poling, and Sailing for the Love of It

“...there are often many things we feel we should do that, in fact, we don't really have to do. Getting to the point where we can tell the difference is a major milestone in the simplification process.”
― Elaine St. James, Living the Simple Life: A Guide to Scaling Down and Enjoying More

“Blank space. Quiet. Nothingness. This is where God has the greatest opportunity to do his thing.”
― Savannah Guthrie, Mostly What God Does: Reflections on Seeking and Finding His Love Everywhere

“Imagine it—God loving you. Seeing you, appreciating you, delighting in you. Knowing you, having compassion on you, healing you, forgiving you. See it, appreciate it, grasp it, hold on to it. Inhale deeply of his goodwill and attune yourself to evidence of his love. Look for it everywhere.”
― Savannah Guthrie, Mostly What God Does: Reflections on Seeking and Finding His Love Everywhere

“Going through deep crises, profound adversity—those are the make-or-break moments for faith; they can be existential threats to your belief, or they can be extraordinary teachers. Sometimes they are both, and not always at the same time.”
― Savannah Guthrie, Mostly What God Does: Reflections on Seeking and Finding His Love Everywhere

“Sometimes the best way to show love or be kind to someone is to meet them where they are.”
― Abby Jimenez, Just for the Summer

“I’ve had a lot of bad things happen to me, Justin. I think sometimes the key to happiness is framing those things in a different way.”
― Abby Jimenez, Just for the Summer

“Unhealed trauma is a crack. And all the little hard things that trickle into it that would have rolled off someone else, settle. Then when life gets cold, that crack gets bigger, longer, deeper. It makes new breaks. You don’t know how broken she was or what she was trying to do to fill those cracks. Being broken is not an excuse for bad behavior, you still have to make good choices and do the right thing. But it can be the reason. And sometimes understanding the reason can be what helps you heal.”
― Abby Jimenez, Just for the Summer

“I do love Trader Joe’s,” I said, smiling at the bag. “Nothing like a grocery store that makes you have to visit another grocery store right after.”
― Abby Jimenez, Just for the Summer

“And sometimes best intentions—well, sometimes the best we have to give just doesn’t work out.”
― Loreth Anne White, The Swimmer

“I have already settled it for myself so flattery and criticism go down the same drain and I am quite free.”
― Georgia O'Keefe

“Falling never scared her as much as failing to find out the truth.”
― Stephanie Garber, Alchemy of Secrets

“I sip my champagne. I like it better than the beer. I wish I had simpler tastes, but I don’t.”
― Rachel Harrison, Play Nice

“But you can build a wall around yourself with scripture and faith.”
― Stephen Graham Jones, The Buffalo Hunter Hunter