Ashley

“This little book took me eight years to earn.
PASSPORT
United States of America
Was it worth the last eight years of my mother's life?
And what sort of daughter does that
make me?”
― Trung Le Nguyen, The Magic Fish

“The fact is, most people go through life without ever living. They say you have to learn how to construct a self who remains free in spite of the system. And you have to get used to the idea that it's every man for himself in this world. It requires a strange self-awareness, whereby everything down to the finest detail must be performed before the eyes of the world.”
― Qiu Miaojin, Notes of a Crocodile

“Here was her mother sitting down across from her, reaching for her hands and chafing them as if she were frozen. She felt the rub of her mother’s wedding ring against her skin, and her mother’s face swam into focus, her brown eyes full of the sharp worry of love, and Lily thought, You will never look at me like this again.”
― Malinda Lo, Last Night at the Telegraph Club

“In many ways, food was how my mother expressed her love. No matter how critical or cruel she seemed—constantly pushing me to be what she felt was the best version of myself—I could always feel her affection radiating from the lunches she packed and the meals she prepared for me just the way I liked them.”
― Michelle Zauner