The Shelf Life of Happiness Quotes

“In spite of everything, the days on this planet are still made of light, and the darkness of night still fills us with fear. And we’re still here, Almodôvar. We’re still here.”
― David Machado, The Shelf Life of Happiness

“We have so much to do, so many places to go, we’re so eager to offer comfort, but instead we waste day after day not knowing how to take care of ourselves, not doing what’s necessary to find our way when we’re lost, so we can only hope that someone will appear to give us a hand, or their whole arm, or their life.”
― David Machado, The Shelf Life of Happiness

“People always need hope.” “Not always. Too much hope makes for a life full of loose ends. It’s not nice to wake up every morning with a life full of loose ends.” “So”
― David Machado, The Shelf Life of Happiness

“Fuck it, this is real life, and we have so much more to do; we have to fight against the affliction of knowing that the future hasn’t yet been written, that anything can happen and not all of it depends on us. I”
― David Machado, The Shelf Life of Happiness

“I’m not afraid, Almodôvar. I still believe, and life goes on like always. In spite of everything, the days on this planet are still made of light, and the darkness of night still fills us with fear. And we’re still here, Almodôvar. We’re still here.”
― David Machado, The Shelf Life of Happiness

“happiness can never be an end in itself; if you think of happiness as an end, it will drive you crazy.”
― David Machado, The Shelf Life of Happiness

“We shouldn’t need bad days to appreciate the good ones; there should always be a joy inside of us, and not just in moments of relief. But we’re doomed by our insistence on relativizing everything. The here and now isn’t enough, so we lock ourselves into a struggle that we’ll never resolve, because we refuse to be happy with less, because we always want more.”
― David Machado, The Shelf Life of Happiness

“Why do you always do this?” “Do what?” “You always find a way to put yourself at the center of everything.” “That’s not true.” “Of course it is. Your fear, your sorrow, your aversion to the world, to life—they’re all greater than you are. They fill the air around you and affect anyone who gets close.” “That’s not my intention.” “I know. But you’re so focused on yourself, on keeping your fears at bay, that you don’t even realize what you’re doing.” “I’m sorry.” “An apology doesn’t help me, Xavier. Just learn to live and cut it out.” “It’s hard.” “It’s hard for everyone. You’re no different from anyone else.”
― David Machado, The Shelf Life of Happiness

“they just have to live each day as if they had just been born, that everything is good: happiness and sadness, anger and love. Everything counts for something.”
― David Machado, The Shelf Life of Happiness

“Look. Every day, billions of people wake up, go out, cross paths, exchange glances, touches, words, and everyone is constantly trying to make sure it all goes okay, aware that we’re all in this together; if we weren’t, it would be impossible for anyone to survive.”
― David Machado, The Shelf Life of Happiness

“And because of moments like these, the world jams up. People let themselves be dictated by their own personal protocols that they’ve established out of absurdity, their habits so ingrained, their perspectives so skewed that they’re addicted to their own logic, and no one is ever willing to step to one side, cede to other ways of looking at things and proceed in new directions; even when reality demands it, even in the absence of alternatives, people would prefer to be stuck than to have to step aside. Imagine where we could be by now. Imagine humanity moving forward, like a wave, never crashing on the shore. Imagine it.”
― David Machado, The Shelf Life of Happiness

“We learn to navigate the world in one way, grow used to certain gestures, accept the power of our own instincts, and halfway through our lives we’re addicted to our own perspectives. Then something suddenly changes, and everything we knew how to do so well, so easily, to resolve the simplest problems, becomes useless. How did the world change so much?”
― David Machado, The Shelf Life of Happiness

“You and I had already spent two-thirds of our lives trying to satisfy that bastard’s every whim, just because we were afraid of what might happen if we refused.”
― David Machado, The Shelf Life of Happiness

“Your fear, your sorrow, your aversion to the world, to life—they’re all greater than you are. They fill the air around you and affect anyone who gets close.” “That’s”
― David Machado, The Shelf Life of Happiness

“There were billions of people in the world, and we had traveled twelve hundred miles to Switzerland—where the average citizen was 80 percent happy—to help a woman who, in spite of the odds, was happier than any of us. She”
― David Machado, The Shelf Life of Happiness

“Daniel, let me take back what I said. You’re not a selfish prick. You’re an egocentric bastard.   Back”
― David Machado, The Shelf Life of Happiness

“forget the theory, which was wrong because its premise was wrong: happiness can never be an end in itself; if you think of happiness as an end, it will drive you crazy.”
― David Machado, The Shelf Life of Happiness

“We have so much to do, so many places to go, we’re so eager to offer comfort, but instead we waste day after day not knowing how to take care of ourselves, not doing what’s necessary to find our way when we’re lost, so we can only hope that someone will appear to give us a hand, or their whole arm, or their life. I didn’t want to help anyone. And I didn’t want any help. Daniel,”
― David Machado, The Shelf Life of Happiness

“ELECTRICITY IN MY VEINS AND MY HEAD FULL OF WORDS, ALL THE WORDS “So”
― David Machado, The Shelf Life of Happiness

“important. We’re used to defining a person by their profession, and when the job is gone, the person disappears with it. That’s not right. Marta had always been a whole person; employment is no more than an accessory for her, like a bracelet, or a hairstyle, or a manner of speaking.”
― David Machado, The Shelf Life of Happiness

“We learn to navigate the world in one way, grow used to certain gestures, accept the power of our own instincts, and halfway through our lives we’re addicted to our own perspectives. Then something suddenly changes, and everything we knew how to do so well, so easily, to resolve the simplest problems, becomes useless. How did the world change so much?” She”
― David Machado, The Shelf Life of Happiness

“One day, the life of human beings will be reduced to a 130-year-long sleep, a total absence of physical activity in exchange for absolute comfort; we’ll even try to do away with dreams, because nothing is more exhausting than dreaming. Everyone’s brains will be as inert as possible, and maybe then we’ll all be completely happy. Daniel,”
― David Machado, The Shelf Life of Happiness