Amelia Ingle

“whether you long to ease the pain of your ancestors, or for a world in which life could survive without consuming other life; whether you yearn for a lost person, an unborn child, the fountain of youth, or unconditional love: These are all manifestations of the same great ache.”
― Susan Cain, Bittersweet: How Sorrow and Longing Make Us Whole

“Live as though all your ancestors were living again through you,” said the ancient Greeks.”
― Susan Cain, Bittersweet: How Sorrow and Longing Make Us Whole

“Whatever pain you can’t get rid of, make it your creative offering.”
― Susan Cain, Bittersweet: How Sorrow and Longing Make Us Whole

“as Jazaieri observes, “There’s no empirical evidence to suggest that beating ourselves up will actually help us change our behavior; in fact, some data suggests that this type of criticism can move us away from our goals rather than towards them.” Conversely, the more gently we speak to ourselves, the more we’ll do the same for others. So the next time you hear that harsh internal voice, pause, take a breath—and try again. Speak to yourself with the same tenderness you’d extend to a beloved child—literally using the same terms of endearment and amount of reassurance that you’d shower on an adorable three-year-old.”
― Susan Cain, Bittersweet: How Sorrow and Longing Make Us Whole