The Private Side of Friendship Quotes

“everything in her life so far, it seemed, had depended on the say-so of others. They said that this changed – that at a certain point in life we all suddenly find ourselves in a position where we no longer depend on the decisions of people in authority – of parents, teachers, employers. They said that you realised you were at that stage when you looked over your shoulder and saw that there was nobody there: that it was you yourself who would give the nod of approval. They said it was like having a window opened on a view that you had only imagined before.”
― Alexander McCall Smith, The Private Side of Friendship: One city. Six strangers. A nation divided. The time of their lives.