Gatefather Quotes

“When you say something mean to a friend,” said Pat, “you can pretend you’re joking, but you thought of it, you had the mean idea, and then you chose to say it. Laughing doesn’t erase that. Not your laughter and not Wheeler’s.”
― Orson Scott Card, Gatefather

“Now...different rules of magic prevail; different words have power. Different customs are now required of everyone and you have to obey or pay. And so we all live in a world where other people hold the power, where other people are the mages who know how to whisper to different social elements and make things happen. And most of us stand around bewildered, wondering what the gods will do next to manipulate our lives.”
― Orson Scott Card, Gatefather

“There is only try and try again, until you can persuade the world to work according to your new plan for it. ... Everything has a mind of its own and follows the laws it already understands.”
― Orson Scott Card, Gatefather

“Power comes only by persuasion; by love and service. It comes from trying and learning.”
― Orson Scott Card, Gatefather