Life with most teenagers was like having a low-grade bladder infection. It hurts, but you had to tough it out.
Anne LamottRead
You own everything that happened to you. Tell your stories.
Interpretation
We are responsible for our own experiences and should embrace sharing our personal narratives.
This quote emphasizes the idea that our life experiences shape who we are, and that we hold ownership of those experiences. By telling our stories, we not only acknowledge our journey but also connect with others, fostering understanding and empathy. It suggests that sharing personal narratives can be empowering and healing, both for ourselves and those who hear them.
In practice
In a motivational speech about resilience at a community event.
Life with most teenagers was like having a low-grade bladder infection. It hurts, but you had to tough it out.
Or you might shout at the top of your lungs or whisper into your sleeve, "I hate you, God." That is a prayer too, because it is real, it is truth, and maybe it is the first sincere thought you've had in months.
Your problem is how you are going to spend this one odd and precious life you have been issued. Whether you're going to spend it trying to look good and creating the illusion that you have power over people and circumstances, or whether you are going to taste it, enjoy it and find out the truth about who you are.
It is hard to remember that you are a cherished spiritual being when you're burping up apple fritters and Cheetos.
Gorgeous, amazing things come into our lives when we are paying attention: mangoes, grandnieces, Bach, ponds. This happens more often when we have as little expectation as possible. If you say, "Well, that's pretty much what I thought I'd see," you are in trouble. At that point you have to ask yourself why you are even here. [...] Astonishing material and revelation appear in our lives all the time. Let it be. Unto us, so much is given. We just have to be open for business.
...because when people have seen you at their worst, you don't have to put on the mask as much.
You felt it as a depth of ease in certain boys, their innate, affable assurance that they would not have to struggle for a place in the world; that is already reserved for them.
Know what we did, Lucy? You and me? We spent our whole lives yearning. Isn't that the God damndest thing?
When a person has lived generously and fought fiercely, she deserves more than sadness at the end.
Life sometimes gives you a second chance.
That was a wonderful period in my life. I mean, I didn't become an artist, but somebody let me do something I loved. What a luxury, to do something you love to do.
There is always one moment in childhood when the door opens and lets the future in.
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