The point isn’t to live without any regrets. The point is to not hate ourselves for having them.
Kathryn SchulzRead
As a kid, I lived almost entirely inside books, and eventually the books started returning the favor. A lot of my internal world feels like an anthology, or a library. It's eclectic and disorganized, but I can browse in it, and that hugely shapes both what and how I write.
Interpretation
What this quote means
Books greatly influence our thoughts and creativity, shaping how we express ourselves.
In this quote, Kathryn Schulz reflects on her childhood experience of immersing herself in books. She describes how this deep engagement with literature has cultivated a rich internal world that informs her writing style and choices, highlighting the transformative power of reading and the eclectic, sometimes chaotic, nature of inspiration drawn from various sources.
Themes
BooksWritingImaginationReadingCreativity
In practice
Example use cases
In a speech about the importance of literature in education, you could say, 'As Kathryn Schulz noted, books can shape our internal world and influence our writing.'
More from Kathryn Schulz
All quotes →Our love of being right is best understood as our fear of being wrong
Kathryn SchulzRead
To err is to wander, and wandering is the way we discover the world; and, lost in thought, it is also the way we discover ourselves. Being right might be gratifying, but in the end it is static, a mere statement. Being wrong is hard and humbling, and sometimes even dangerous, but in the end it is a journey, and a story.
Kathryn SchulzRead
We're terrified of not having the answers, and we would sometimes rather assert an incorrect answer than make our peace with the fact that we really don't know.
Kathryn SchulzRead
Regret doesn't remind us that we did badly. It reminds us that we know we can do better.
Kathryn SchulzRead
Similar quotes
I see myself as, first and above all, a teacher of history; next, a writer of European history; next, a commentator on European affairs; next, a public intellectual voice within the American left; and only then an occasional, opportunistic participant in the pained American discussion of the Jewish matter.
Tony JudtRead
One looks back with appreciation to the brilliant teachers, but with gratitude to those who touched our human feelings. The curriculum is so much necessary raw material, but warmth is the vital element for the growing plant and for the soul of the child.
Carl JungRead
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William GoldingRead
My parents didn't know much science; in fact, they didn't know science at all. But they could recognize a science book when they saw it, and they spent a lot of time at bookstores, combing the remainder tables for science books to buy for me. I had one of the biggest libraries of any kid in school, built on books that cost 50 cents or a dollar.
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You must find time for reading, or surrender yourself to self-chosen ignorance.
ConfuciusRead
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Daniel GoldinRead