Alena

“He feels relatively safe here, though he is aware as he walks the circumference of the carnival that he is also pacing along the wall of a zoo's enclosure. Protected and yet trapped. Included and collected.”
― Dan Chaon, One of Us

“Friends are like oxygen. If you’ve been blessed enough to have always been surrounded by friends, you might think I’m overplaying this. I don’t blame you. If you’d always been surrounded by air, you wouldn’t think to credit it for your very existence either. But I’ve spent much of my life gasping for breath, so I promise you, it’s true. Friends are like oxygen.”
― Sally Hepworth, Mad Mabel

“As far as I'm concerned calling your child Sailor was a declaration that you had far too much time on your hands and anyone who attempted to name their child that should be issued the name Eustace or Darold by the government as punishment.”
― Sally Hepworth, Mad Mabel

“Tears
The crystal rags
Viscous tatters
of a worn-through soul”
― Maya Angelou