Els > Els's Quotes

“I've never met a strong person with an easy past.”
― Atticus

“Empirically speaking, we are made of star stuff. Why aren’t we talking more about that?”
― Maggie Nelson, The Argonauts

“We need to reclaim the word 'feminism'. We need the word 'feminism' back real bad. When statistics come in saying that only 29% of American women would describe themselves as feminist - and only 42% of British women - I used to think, What do you think feminism IS, ladies? What part of 'liberation for women' is not for you? Is it freedom to vote? The right not to be owned by the man you marry? The campaign for equal pay? 'Vogue' by Madonna? Jeans? Did all that good shit GET ON YOUR NERVES? Or were you just DRUNK AT THE TIME OF THE SURVEY?”
― Caitlin Moran, How to Be a Woman

“Ik las steeds meer en meer. Mijn nieuwe vrienden waren grappig, slim en 24 uur per dag beschikbaar. In een hoge muur lagen ze rondom mijn bed opgestapeld. Mijn voorkeur ging uit naar boeken van vrouwen. Verdrietige, sterke vrouwen. Ik wilde zijn zoals zij, vrouwen die met iedereen omgingen, maar helemaal niemand nodig hadden, en ik was precies het tegenovergestelde: ik ging met helemaal niemand om, maar had iedereen nodig.”
― Lieke Marsman, Het tegenovergestelde van een mens

“It is worse to stay where one does not belong at all than to wander about lost for a while and looking for the psychic and soulful kinship one requires”
― Clarissa Pinkola Estés, Women Who Run With the Wolves

“Het vervelende met gedachten is dat je ze niet kan ont-denken.”
― Griet Op de Beeck, Vele hemels boven de zevende

“We don't see things as they are, we see them as we are.”
― Anaïs Nin

“It is our choices, Harry, that show what we truly are, far more than our abilities.”
― J.K. Rowling, Harry Potter and the Chamber of Secrets

“Of course it is happening inside your head, Harry, but why on earth should that mean that it is not real?”
― J.K. Rowling, Harry Potter and the Deathly Hallows

“Happiness can be found, even in the darkest of times, if one only remembers to turn on the light.”
― J.K. Rowling, Harry Potter and the Prisoner of Azkaban

“...for love casts out fear, and gratitude can conquer pride.”
― Louisa May Alcott, Little Women

“Good women always think it is their fault when someone else is being offensive. Bad women never take the blame for anything.”
― Anita Brookner, Hotel du Lac

“I hope you will go out and let stories, that is life, happen to you, and that you will work with these stories... water them with your blood and tears and your laughter till they bloom, till you yourself burst into bloom.”
― Clarissa Pinkola Estés, Women Who Run With the Wolves

“I want you to know, if you ever read this, there was a time when I would rather have had you by my side than any one of these words; I would rather have had you by my side than all the blue in the world.

But now you are talking as if love were a consolation. Simone Weil warned otherwise. 'Love is not consolation,' she wrote. 'It is light.'

All right then, let me try to rephrase. When I was alive, I aimed to be a student not of longing but of light.”
― Maggie Nelson, Bluets

“And above all, watch with glittering eyes the whole world around you because the greatest secrets are always hidden in the most unlikely places. Those who don't believe in magic will never find it.”
― Roald Dahl

“So many books, so little time.”
― Frank Zappa

“I want to do something splendid...something heroic or wonderful that won't be forgotten after I'm dead. I don't know what, but I'm on the watch for it and mean to astonish you all someday.”
― Louisa May Alcott, Little Women

“Take some books and read; that’s an immense help; and books are always good company if you have the right sort.”
― Louisa May Alcott, Little Women

“Is a dream a lie if it don't come true? Or is it something worse?”
― Bruce Springsteen, Songs : Bruce Springsteen

“Misschien is dat wel wat me 's nachts het bangst maakt.
Dat niemand op je let.
Dat niemand zich zorgen over je maakt.
Dat niemand je opmerkt.
Dat je net zo goed dood kunt zijn.”
― Erna Sassen, Dit is geen dagboek

“Echt contact begint bij openheid, aan twee kanten. Dat is waar de moeilijkheden beginnen, dat is waar het interessant wordt.”
― Eva Meijer, Dagpauwoog

“Indeed, courage is not the absence of fear but the ability to feel the fear without letting it stop you from doing what you want.”
― Gillan Drew, An Adult with an Autism Diagnosis: A Guide for the Newly Diagnosed

“Too late" arrives sooner than we think.”
― Alix Garin, Ne m'oublie pas

“I am done living in a world where women are lied to about their bodies; where women are objects of sexual desire but not subjects of sexual pleasure; where sex is used as a weapon against women; and where women believe their bodies are broken, simply because those bodies are not male. And I am done living in a world where women are trained from birth to treat their bodies as the enemy.”
― Emily Nagoski, Come as You Are: The Surprising New Science that Will Transform Your Sex Life

“Sometimes I wish for falling
Wish for the release
Wish for falling through the air
To give me some relief
Because falling's not the problem
When I'm falling I'm in peace
It's only when I hit the ground
It causes all the grief”
― Florence Welch

“Everything I do is dictated by my relationship with other people, and I mostly like that about myself. I’m a good daughter, friend, neighbour, teacher, even colleague – I mean, I always take time to re-fill the water cooler when its nearing empty. But there’s one relationship I’ve neglected my whole life: my relationship with myself”
― Claire Christian, It's Been a Pleasure, Noni Blake

“One must always be careful of books," said Tessa, "and what is inside them, for words have the power to change us.”
― Cassandra Clare, Clockwork Angel

“The work that I do on myself may not be evident in my daily exchanges, but little by little, if I continue, I hope that my actions will reflect my changing mindset, and next time, I promise myself, I'll do things differently. Getting on top of my shortcomings is not immediate; it's endless.”
― Kae Tempest, On Connection

“For words to have meaning, they have to be read.”
― Kae Tempest, On Connection

“Nothing is absolute. Everything changes, everything moves, everything revolves, everything flies and goes away.”
― Frida Kahlo