Shellen Lubin

“Integrity, America. You lack integrity. The degree of distance between how we want to see ourselves and how we are is enormous. Integrity. Individually and as a people. We lack integrity.

As an individual, I have long known that the only hope for integrity is not only the effort expended to live up to our word, but the willingness to own how and where we have not, and to hold ourselves accountable for the consequences of that.”
― Shellen Lubin

“So I say to you as I say to myself--
as true of short-term adventures and
last stages of long-term experiences
as it is of singing:

'Don't deny yourself the experience of going deeply
just because you're not going to be there for very long.”
― Shellen Lubin

“Sixth grade, I remembermy best friend Wendy
whose parents were fighting, harshly, loudly,
and we sat on the curb outside so she wouldn't have to hear it,
and she cried, believing her world was falling apart.
I made up a kind-of game:
to everything she would say, I would respond
"Is that a fact or an opinion?"
and she had to figure it out and say it outloud--
we played it for hours,
ending up laughing
but she also began to separate
what was actually happening inside the house
from her feelings about it
and her fears.

I feel like I'm still playing "Fact or Opinion"
in my writing,
in the world--
with family, friends,
and, of course, myself.

Wish I could play it with our governmental representatives,
our institutions,
our courts.”
― Shellen Lubin

“We must take advantage of those moments of wonder--
those moments that stir up the creative juices,
that foster belief and faith--
to re-imagine what is possible
in ourselves,
in our lives,
in our world.

And then we must make use
of all that beautiful renewed energy,
all that hope and determination--
to move,
to effect change.”
― Shellen Lubin