“We tell ourselves stories in order to live,” said Joan Didion. A friend once told me that she was trying to turn “the flaming wreckage” of her life into a story. Perhaps everyone has a flaming wreckage of a life. We can choose to watch it burn. Or we can take the jagged pieces and make a new life with the repaired seams evident, stark and startling and beautiful.
“When someone has been mean to you, why would you want to be good to them?' 'You wouldn't want to. That's what makes it hard. You do it anyway. Being good is hard. Much harder than being bad.”
― The People of Sparks
― The People of Sparks
“I want my life to be like-like making pottery. I want to enjoy it while it's happening, not just for where it might get me eventually.”
― Happy Place
― Happy Place
“The trouble with anger is, it gets hold of you. And then you aren't the master of yourself anymore. Anger is. And when anger is the boss, you get unintended consequences.”
― The City of Ember
― The City of Ember
“she told me to find someone someday who will hug me when I’m sad and then help me look on the bright side of things when all I can see is the dark.”
― Beg, Borrow, or Steal
― Beg, Borrow, or Steal
Melissa’s 2025 Year in Books
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