Allen Eskens > Quotes

“no one can change the sound of an echo.”
― Allen Eskens, The Life We Bury

“We are surrounded every day by the wonders of life, wonders beyond comprehension that we simply take for granted. I decided that day that I would live my life—not simply exist. If I died and discovered heaven on the other side, well, that'd be just fine and dandy. But if I didn't live my life as if I was already in heaven, and I died and found only nothingness, well…I would have wasted my life. I would have wasted my one chance in all of history to be alive.” Carl”
― Allen Eskens, The Life We Bury

“What if I was wrong? What if there was no other side. What if, in all the eons of eternity, this was the one and only time that I would be alive. How would I live my life if that were the case?”
― Allen Eskens, The Life We Bury

“You put enough like-minded idiots in a room, and pretty soon their backward way of thinking starts to take on an air of legitimacy.”
― Allen Eskens, Nothing More Dangerous

“That you understand how wrong it is to judge someone before you know their whole story.”
― Allen Eskens, The Life We Bury

“What if there was no other side. What if, in all the eons of eternity, this was the one and only time that I would be alive. How would I live my life if that were the case? Know what I mean? What if this was all there is?” “Well, I guess there'd be a lot of disappointed dead priests,” I said. Carl chuckled. “Well, there's that,” he said. “But it also means that this is our heaven. We are surrounded every day by the wonders of life, wonders beyond comprehension that we simply take for granted. I decided that day that I would live my life—not simply exist. If I died and discovered heaven on the other side, well, that'd be just fine and dandy. But if I didn't live my life as if I was already in heaven, and I died and found only nothingness, well… I would have wasted my life. I would have wasted my one chance in all of history to be alive.”
― Allen Eskens, The Life We Bury

“she lived her life with her fingers in her ears, as though the truth would not exist if she never heard the words spoken aloud.”
― Allen Eskens, The Life We Bury

“she knew who my mother was and figured that no one can change the sound of an echo.”
― Allen Eskens, The Life We Bury

“do you know what a dying declaration is?” I didn't, although I gave it a shot. “It's a declaration made by someone who is dying?” “It is a term of law,” he said. “If a man whispers the name of his killer and then dies, it's considered good evidence because there's a belief—an understanding—that a person who is dying would not want to die with a lie upon his lips. No sin could be greater than a sin that cannot be rectified, the sin you never get to confess.”
― Allen Eskens, The Life We Bury

“He was a quiet man who could command attention with a simple glance or nod, a man who possessed equal part strength and gentleness and wore them, not in layers, but blended like fine leather.”
― Allen Eskens, The Life We Bury

“Tufts of hair stuck out of my head in all directions, like I’d been cow-licked by a drunken heifer.”
― Allen Eskens, The Life We Bury

“No sin could be greater than a sin that cannot be rectified, the sin you never get to confess.”
― Allen Eskens, The Life We Bury

“But memories aren’t like photographs; they can’t halt the passing of time. Instead, they lay like footsteps along a path each determined by the step that came before and colored by the ones to follow.”
― Allen Eskens , Nothing More Dangerous

“No matter how hard you try, there are some things you just can't run away from.”
― Allen Eskens, The Life We Bury

“That’s the thing about the truth; the truth doesn’t change. Only a lie will change over time.”
― Allen Eskens, The Heavens May Fall

“In a perfect world, ignorant notions should die a quick death. A thing like racism, if it can’t find a kindred spirit...it’s like a dog barking at a stone. But if you can find just one other person who thinks like you . ..well even the most irrational belief can grow roots. Small minded people feed off each other and before you know it, you have mobs, and you have burning crosses, and lynchings” .”
― Allen Eskens, Nothing More Dangerous

“I drew in a breath of crisp December air and stood perfectly still, savoring the feel, the sound, and the smell of the world around me, sensations that would have passed by me unnoticed had I never met Carl Iverson.”
― Allen Eskens, The Life We Bury

“Add to that cauldron an ever increasing measure of cheap vodka--a form of self-medication that quelled the inner scream but amplified the outer crazy--and you get a picture of the mother I left behind.”
― Allen Eskens, The Life We Bury

“While it was true that Angus was legally an adult, he'd taken a tumble a few years back that left him a bubble or two off center.”
― Allen Eskens, Nothing More Dangerous

“You cover your eyes with your hands and think that the problem will go away. To say that you do not care about politics is to be a man adrift on the ocean who says that he does not care about water.”
― Allen Eskens, The Quiet Librarian

“Men have the capacity for good as much as they have the capacity for cruelty. What is right and what is wrong is written on our hearts. But when there is war, men follow what they choose to follow and rationalize the evil they do. The Serbs see this as their country. They see us as a blight. They are told that the only way to have peace is to expel us or kill us. When such are the words they hear every minute of every day, it becomes too loud for them to listen to their hearts. They will do terrible things and believe they are doing what is right.”
― Allen Eskens, The Quiet Librarian

“/../ no one can change the sound of an echo.”
― Allen Eskens

“But we do have control of how much of our soul we leave behind in this mess. Don't ever forget that. We do still have some choices.”
― Allen Eskens, The Life We Bury

“What if, in all the eons of enternity, this was the one and only time that I would be alive. How would I live my life if that were the case? Know what I mean? What if this was all there is?"
"Well, I guess there'd be a lot of disappointed dead priests," I said.
Carl chuckled. "Well, there that," he said. "But it also means that this is our heaven. We are surrounded every day by the wonders of life, wonders beyond comprehension that we simply take for granted. I decided that day that I would live my life-not simply exist. If I died and discovered heaven on the other side, whell, that'd be just fine and dandy. But if I didn't live my life as if I was already in heave, and I died and found only nothingness, well...I would have wasted my life. I would have wasted my one chance in all of history to be alive.”
― Allen Eskens, The Life We Bury

“There are no miracles, my friend. God's hand is in everything; it's only when we can't explain it that we call it a miracle.”
― Allen Eskens, Saving Emma

“Of course that diagnosis was never made official because my mother refused to get professional help. Instead, she lived her life with her fingers in her ears, as though the truth would not exist if she never heard the words spoken aloud. Add to that cauldron an ever increasing measure of cheap vodka—a form of self-medication that quelled the inner scream but amplified the outer crazy—and you get a picture of the mother I left behind. She”
― Allen Eskens, The Life We Bury

“Occam's razor?” “It's a principle that says that all things being equal, the simplest conclusion is usually the correct one.”
― Allen Eskens, The Life We Bury

“Sometimes, Joe, it takes the world crashing in around you to realize that you’re not in control.”
― Allen Eskens, The Shadows We Hide

“Now, as I walk back to him, carrying these rocks, I also carry the weight of Jenni's words to me: "I'd never want you to become someone bad because of me". That memory presses me down and threatens to buckle my knees more than any bundle or rocks ever could.”
― Allen Eskens, The Deep Dark Descending

“Time can corrupt a memory, spoil its shape, its color, its truth, wear it down to the point that it’s barely recognizable.”
― Allen Eskens, Saving Emma