If I said I was madly in love with you, I'd be lying and what's more, you'd know it.
Margaret MitchellRead
Now she had a fumbling knowledge that, had she ever understood Ashley, she would never have loved him; had she ever understood Rhett, she would never have lost him.
Interpretation
Understanding a person deeply can change the way we relate to them and the emotions we feel.
In this quote, Margaret Mitchell highlights the complexity of love and understanding. The speaker reflects on the idea that had she truly comprehended the nature of Ashley, her feelings for him would have diminished, while a better understanding of Rhett might have preserved their relationship. This suggests that love is often intertwined with our perceptions and misperceptions of others.
In practice
In a discussion about the complexities of love during a relationship workshop.
If I said I was madly in love with you, I'd be lying and what's more, you'd know it.
You're like the thief who isn't the least bit sorry he stole, but is terribly, terribly sorry he's going to jail. - Rhett Butler
It's a curse - this not wanting to look on naked realities. Until the war, life was never more real to me than a shadow show on a curtain. And I preferred it so. I do not like the outlines of things to be too sharp. I like them gently blurred, a little hazy.
Well, my dear, take heart. Some day, I will kiss you and you will like it. But not now, so I beg you not to be too impatient.
men are so conceited theyβll believe anything that flatters them
Oh, why was he so handsomely blond, so courteously aloof, so maddeningly boring with his talk about Europe and books and music and poetry and things that interested her not at all - and yet so desirable?
Let me tell you I am better acquainted with you for a long absence, as men are with themselves for a long affliction: absence does but hold off a friend, to make one see him the truer.
Being popular comes when you have everything. But to be liked, it means that you must be treating people with respect and you must be showing kindness toward them.
We keep racism alive. We pass it on to our children. I think that is very sad.
It is impossible to forgive someone if you feel superior to him or her.
Forgiving does not erase the bitter past. A healed memory is not a deleted memory. Instead, forgiving what we cannot forget creates a new way to remember. We change the memory of our past into a hope for our future.
When people are speaking, they require our undivided attention. We focus on them; we listen very carefully. We listen to the spoken words and the unspoken messages. This means looking directly at the person, eyes connected; we forget we have a watch, just focusing for that moment on that person.
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