Taylor Atkinson > Recent Status Updates

"It is not true that women cannot keep secrets. Where they love, they can be trusted to death and beyond, against all sense and reason. It is their weakness, and their great strength."

"...I had been so used to God's voice in the fire and stars that I had forgotten to listen for it in the counsels of men."

Made myself read a short stack of other books before resuming this one; I've been going through Emma's journal entirely too quickly.

Even with it having been several weeks (and several epic books that completely transported my mind away from Emma's world) since I was last in this book, picking this back up yesterday felt exactly like stepping into a room of old friends who I've known for years. *contended sigh*

Must...

Slow...

Down.

Gah!

"It's not like that..."

"It's exactly like that!"

Lovely scene setting:

"A cloud reached out and grappled with the moon for possession of the night."

"Sometimes, the price of dreams is achieving them."

"But he laughed as the English do; at the end of his teeth."

😆 What an unexpected and delightful description.

There's only a hour left! I'm starting to worry hat there is not enough time for all the resolutions we need! Tia still needs to go after her last two marks, Gavin needs to attempt his 7th purpose, Kip and The Mighty still needs to face off against the White King, Aliviana needs to find Kip before she does or doesn't become a god, and where the heck has Corvan been?!
My worry is breaking my fun.

I know I'm enjoying it when I turn the playback speed down from 2x to 1x. Gotta savor this.

I am having to work hard to keep reading. I just want to put it down in exchange for something (anything?) else. 1,000 years separating our two FMC and the only thing that has changed in their society is that some (a very few) people have guns?

"Through critical conversations and a strong commitment to reflection, parenting -- whether it's through a lens of social justice or not -- is always about making the best decisions with the knowledge you have; making mistakes, adjusting, and then readjusting. Remember to give yourself and your children grace and compassion as you do this work together. It does make a difference; I promise you."

"Without courage, we cannot practice any other virtue with consistency. We can't be kind, true, merciful, generous, or honest. Right now, our country is yearning for those traits to shine through in all of us..."

"If you don't call [private body parts] by name, it teaches your child that the private parts of their body are something to hide or something to be ashamed of. In not naming, you unintentionally teach your children that if someone touches them "there," it may not be safe to tell you, or a trusted adult, since even saying the real name of my private parts out load was too scary -- even for mommy."

"Raising children who recognize when something doesn't feel right to them in their bodies begins when you teach your children about body parts. Actively teaching about body privacy, where children are clear about the parts of their body that are private and shouldn't be looked at our touched by others, begins by using the actual names of body parts."

"We have to listen to, and affirm, our children's voices. It doesn't force one dominant powerful voice but, instead, reexamines cultural assumptions that would have us silence or disregard a young person's voice. Children have important and valid perspectives, even if they are different than yours. Learning more about their viewpoints will ultimately help you learn more about your child. And who doesn't want that?"

[Open dialogue] may sound odd to you. Parents are often assumed to be correct. And because of age and experience, sometimes we are. But if we let the power differential between parent and child get in the way of listening, we slowly drown out the voices of our children and they become unable to use their voice out in the world.

"[Open dialogue] requires us to open to our children's opinions and knowledge, and it asks that we allow them to be in the role of teacher."

"But if we don't give our children opportunities to practice using their voice at home, they won't know how to use it in the world."

"Allyship helps you move from protecting your children to teaching your children how to protect and stand with other."

Being an ally means standing in unconditional solidarity to the people and the cause without seeking their validation for the work that you are doing. You should never be in the front. You should never take charge unless you are directly asked to do so. You are transferring the benefits of your privilege to those that lack it in that moment.

"What is so important? You need a love potion? Want to hump some fine-looking thrall on your farm?"

"No," Varg explained, "I don't want a love potion." He shook his head, "it is more important than that."

"More important than a hump?" Svik said, raising an eyebrow. "I did not know that could be true."

"Varg pulled his hood back up and slipped into [the city] like lice into a beard."

Good. And exhausting.
More later.

"She assumes," Wax said, "that our detective style isn't normally the punchy-punchy, staby-staby type."

"To be fair," Wayne said, "it's usually more of a shooty-shooty, whacky-whacky type."

Marasi rubbed her forehead, "Why are we having this conversation?"

Marasi sighed, "Wayne, can't you ever let a joke die?"

"Hun, that joke started dead," he said. "I'm just giving it a proper burial."

Sterris regarded the valet with a cool expression, "Didn't you inquire about your prospective master before entering Lord Waxillium's employ?"

"Well, I mean I knew he had an interest in the constabulary, like some lords have an interest in the symphony or in civic matters. It seemed odd but not ungentlemanly. I mean, it's not as if he was involved in the *theater*."