The Infinite Pieces of Us Quotes

“I am no longer a whole number. I carry a decimal now. Each box in my room is just a reminder of my remainder. The problem is, I can’t figure out if I’m less than or more than I was before. I know I’m not the same.”
― Rebekah Crane, The Infinite Pieces of Us

“With math, a question doesn’t exist without an answer. It’s a guarantee. If I work on a problem long enough, I will solve it.”
― Rebekah Crane, The Infinite Pieces of Us

“Truth—the universe is always speaking, but people are too consumed with their own voices to hear her.”
― Rebekah Crane, The Infinite Pieces of Us

“I stare at my female fish and wonder why God picked a woman out of wedlock. Why put her through that? Where’s the grace in that? Why must it always be women who carry the burden? If we’re that much better than men, why didn’t Mary have a girl? Why wasn’t it the Daughter of God?”
― Rebekah Crane, The Infinite Pieces of Us

“Infinity exists in the whole,” Beth says, her arms moving to emphasize each of the words. “You can be infinite and finite at the same time. You’re born and you die. Finite. But there’s a part of you, your soul, that has always existed, so it was never born, and it can never die. Infinite. It’s so freaking mind-blowing. Only God could think of that.”
― Rebekah Crane, The Infinite Pieces of Us

“Pain is inevitable in life,” Color says. “The point isn’t to avoid it. The point is to surround yourself with people who catch you when you fall”
― Rebekah Crane, The Infinite Pieces of Us

“You know what’s odd, Moss?” “What?” I smile. “Every other number.”
― Rebekah Crane, The Infinite Pieces of Us

“And an axiom is truth and truth is an axiom, but everything still remains unproved, which makes things really complicated.”
― Rebekah Crane, The Infinite Pieces of Us

“Faith and bullshit wear the same clothes. It’s impossible to know which is which.”
― Rebekah Crane, The Infinite Pieces of Us

“trust is handing over a piece of your heart to someone and believing they’ll hold it as delicately as you do.”
― Rebekah Crane, The Infinite Pieces of Us

“but Color’s more of a dreamer than I am.” Moss dips his chin in the water. “Which means life disappoints her more often.”
― Rebekah Crane, The Infinite Pieces of Us

“Turns out, there are problems everywhere. Problems are infinite.”
― Rebekah Crane, The Infinite Pieces of Us

“I don’t need forgiveness from God. I need forgiveness from myself.”
― Rebekah Crane, The Infinite Pieces of Us

“The problem is, I can’t figure out if I’m less than or more than I was before. I know I’m not the same.”
― Rebekah Crane, The Infinite Pieces of Us

“Tell me what an axiom is,” Mom said. “A statement accepted as true without proof.” “You want to know what God is, Esther. God is an axiom.”
― Rebekah Crane, The Infinite Pieces of Us

“Some people were born to drive, some people were born to be driven.”
― Rebekah Crane, The Infinite Pieces of Us

“Some of us prefer to run through life. Some like to walk.”
― Rebekah Crane, The Infinite Pieces of Us

“Sometimes, you just need to dance to shake off the dust.”
― Rebekah Crane, The Infinite Pieces of Us

“The whole world is one big container. Everyone’s a hostage. That’s life.”
― Rebekah Crane, The Infinite Pieces of Us

“He starts down the trail again, running even faster than before, almost rejuvenated. That or he really doesn’t want to talk to me. I don’t follow him, because it’s hard to escape when someone’s riding your tail and you have to look back constantly when you should keep your eyes forward. But the boy with the buzzed hair asks really good questions. I may have met my match. I ask Mom if I can go out tonight. It’s Friday. We’re standing in the kitchen making dinner. Tom is still at the bank. Mom fills up my “Esther” water bottle and sets it down next to me. “With who?” I keep my head down as I chop onions for the spaghetti sauce. They sting my eyes. “Color. The girl who cleans our house,” I say. “You said we need to make friends.” “Color,” Mom says. “Interesting name.” She doesn’t answer my question right away, but takes some of the chopped onions and adds them to the cooking meat. I keep dicing as tears begin to form in my eyes and fall down my cheeks. “You know, I wanted to name you Violet, but your dad didn’t like names that were colors, like Ruby and Hazel.” Mom tucks loose auburn hair behind her ear. Hannah does the same motion with her hair, too. “Amber . . . Jade . . . Goldie?” I say. “How about Olive?” “Raven?” “Scarlet.” I gag. “I still love the name Violet, though,” Mom says. “It’s nice for a girl.” “I like it, too.” I keep chopping. Mom keeps cooking. I add more onions to the pot. She turns to me then, with tears running down her face, just like mine. We stare at each other. It’s the wettest thing to happen in the desert since we arrived. I ask Mom in my head, Why did you let this happen? It’s the most selfish thing I’ve ever asked because I made this happen. I wrote the equation and asked Mom and Tom to answer it. And they did. “From the onions,” Mom says, with a sniffle that knows it’s a lie. I hand her a napkin. She points at the “Esther” water bottle as she pats her face dry. “Drink that.” I follow her orders.”
― Rebekah Crane, The Infinite Pieces of Us

“I knew it wouldn’t last. Everything crumbles.”
― Rebekah Crane, The Infinite Pieces of Us

“Perfection is overrated,” Color says. “What’s the fun in that? It’s our holes that make us interesting.”
― Rebekah Crane, The Infinite Pieces of Us

“Tom said I was leaving it behind, but that’s not how secrets work. They follow you. Haunt you. Steal your breath when you’re not looking.”
― Rebekah Crane, The Infinite Pieces of Us

“understand that one plus one equals two, and two is more than one. My math skills far outreach addition. But more doesn’t always equal love.”
― Rebekah Crane, The Infinite Pieces of Us

“All I’m saying is you can’t do anything about the past. But it doesn’t really exist. Memories are just a mind manipulation to keep you tethered to something that’s no longer there. Free yourself and let it go.”
― Rebekah Crane, The Infinite Pieces of Us

“Nothing is permanent,” Color says. “I’m really feeling that truth right now.” “Except infinity,” I say. “It goes on and on and on and on and on and on and on . . .”
― Rebekah Crane, The Infinite Pieces of Us

“Why is it so easy to want love for other people but not to accept it for ourselves?”
― Rebekah Crane, The Infinite Pieces of Us

“That’s the plight of women—no matter how miraculous we are, we still have to live in a world governed by men’s standards.”
― Rebekah Crane, The Infinite Pieces of Us

“Don’t worry. We’ll figure it out,” she says eventually. “There is always another way, or the universe wouldn’t have created a right and left side.” I’ve never met anyone more confusing and brilliant at the same time.”
― Rebekah Crane, The Infinite Pieces of Us

“She told me that being a parent meant being perpetually afraid that something might happen to the one thing you don’t want to lose. That every day you’ll worry and think about this possibility to the point of madness, until all that’s left is to throw your hands up and have faith that it’s all going to be OK.”
― Rebekah Crane, The Infinite Pieces of Us