The Summer Cottage Quotes

“We too often let others take our dreams from us. We let fear overwhelm us. We take the path of least resistance. We stop trying to build our own castle.”
― Viola Shipman, The Summer Cottage

“Think what a better world it would be if...the whole world had cookies and milk about three o’clock every afternoon and then lay down with our blankies for a nap.”
― Viola Shipman, The Summer Cottage

“We can’t see everyone’s past—the hardships and sadness people have gone through is often buried deep—but we all have the ability to continue growing until the world is able to witness our growth and beauty.”
― Viola Shipman, The Summer Cottage

“Change is inevitable. Forgetting is inexcusable.”
― Viola Shipman, The Summer Cottage

“Sunsets are like snowflakes. No one is the same, my mom said. We miss too many of them rushing around. They are celebrations because every day is an accomplishment, a blessing of epic magnitude that we all take for granted. No matter how difficult a day has been, a sunset proves that there is still hope and good things can happen tomorrow.”
― Viola Shipman, The Summer Cottage

“The greatest gift a parent can leave a child is that parent’s own independence.”
― Viola Shipman, The Summer Cottage

“beauty of childhood and equality of humans too often gets lost in the absurdity of adulthood and inequality of the world.”
― Viola Shipman, The Summer Cottage

“Most people sleepwalk through life playing the game. They’re like sheeple.” “Sheeple?” “Part people, part sheep,” he says, “following the herd mentality.”
― Viola Shipman, The Summer Cottage

“Sunsets are like snowflakes. No one is the same, my mom said. We miss too many of them rushing around. They are celebrations because every day is an accomplishment, a blessing of epic magnitude that we all take for granted. No matter how difficult a day has been, a sunset proves that there is still hope and good things can happen tomorrow. See how slowly they seem to take, and then how quickly they fade? my dad asked. Sunsets are really metaphors for life, which is why we should slow down to enjoy them. Which is why I always want you to appreciate them.”
― Viola Shipman, The Summer Cottage

“Dottie Frank, who is bigger than life, sweeter than my grandma’s cherry-chip cake and more giving than a lucky slot machine; Rita Mae Brown (who calls me Tallulah Bankhead) told me never to give up and to”
― Viola Shipman, The Summer Cottage

“always kick a** (or she’d come for them); Jane Green, whose early novels inspired me to want to write women’s fiction; Adriana Trigiani, the literary tornado of positivity; Nancy Thayer, the queen of the summer read and first to blurb my first novel; Debbie Macomber, who supported me from the start; the gracious Laura Lane McNeal; the generous, sweet Caroline Leavitt, whose writing advice is always top of mind; and, oh, yes, two men! The wonderfully kind and talented Richard Paul Evans and Garth Stein.”
― Viola Shipman, The Summer Cottage

“passage Rosamunde Pilcher wrote so long ago: “The greatest gift a parent can leave a child is that parent’s own independence.”
― Viola Shipman, The Summer Cottage

“She used to say that every year 90 percent of the children’s parents in her classroom—like their kids—were incredible people. But 10 percent were a nightmare, and—in the beginning—she ended up focusing nearly all of her energy and attention on the smallest,”
― Viola Shipman, The Summer Cottage

“Wir alle zweifeln an uns, was uns letztlich daran hindert, der zu werden, der wir sein wollen.”
― Viola Shipman, The Summer Cottage

“To be honest, I only have about four hundred months in my life’s checking account if I live into my eighties, and that, for once, seems more important than what’s in my retirement account. I want to do something meaningful and courageous, something that makes me deeply and achingly happy. For once, I want to hold my breath, close my eyes and jump.”
― Viola Shipman, The Summer Cottage

“To be honest, I only have about four hundred months in my life’s checking account if I live into my eighties, and that, for once, seems more important than what’s in my retirement account. I want to do something meaningful and courageous, something that makes me deeply and achingly happy. For once,”
― Viola Shipman, The Summer Cottage

“all doubt ourselves, which ultimately paralyzes us from becoming who we want to be.”
― Viola Shipman, The Summer Cottage

“What if ‘ifs’ and ‘buts’ were candy and nuts? Then every day would be Christmas.”
― Viola Shipman, The Summer Cottage

“How can they know where they’re going if they don’t know where they come from?” Grace interrupts.”
― Viola Shipman, The Summer Cottage