Lauren

“How do you improve yourself without challenging your mind? How do you leave a better world for your children? Delvin wondered. Then he remembered that was the point. People like Lula didn’t want change. They were perfectly happy with the way things were.”
― Kirsten Miller, Lula Dean’s Little Library of Banned Books

“Some people grow up knowing what they want to do. They color inside the lines, study at the right school, check off the boxes, and in the end? They are handed the grown-up life they've dreamed of. (That's mostly bullshit for the record.) Trying to figure out what you want to do, who you want to be is messy as hell. The best anyone can hope for is to figure out the next step.”
― Laurie Halse Anderson, Shout

“I'm sorry you didn't get the help you needed.
You deserved a soft afghan wrapped around you,
People to hold your hands while you learned to walk again,
So stand with us now.”
― Laurie Halse Anderson, Shout

“Sisters of the torn shirts.
Sisters of the chase around the desk, casting couch, hotel room, file cabinet.
Sisters dragging shattered dreams, bruised hopes, ambitions abandoned in the dirt.
Sisters fishing one by one in the lake of shame.
Hooks baited with fear always come back empty.
Truth dawns slow when you've been beaten and lied to, but it burns hard and bright once it wakes.
Sisters, drop everything.
Walk away from the lake, leaning on each other's shoulders when you need the support.
Feel the contractions of another truth ready to be born.
Shame turned inside out is rage.”
― Laurie Halse Anderson, Shout