When I was a kid, I got in trouble for lying a lot, and I had a teacher say, 'Instead of lying, write it down, because if you write it down, it's not a lie anymore; it's fiction.'
Interpretation
Writing transforms lies into fiction, which can be a creative outlet.
This quote highlights the creative potential of writing. It suggests that instead of viewing dishonest statements as mere fabrications, one can consider them as seeds for storytelling, thus framing a negative action in a more positive light. Writing can turn a lie into a form of art, allowing for expression and creativity.
In practice
In a classroom setting, a teacher might use this quote to encourage students to channel their imaginative thoughts into writing instead of lying.
'Brown Girl Dreaming' was a book I had a lot of doubts about - mainly, would this story be meaningful to anyone besides me? My editor, Nancy Paulsen, kept assuring me, but there were moments when I was in a really sad place with the story for so many reasons. It wasn't an easy book to write - emotionally, physically, or creatively.
In the midst of observing the world and coming to consciousness, I was becoming a writer, and what I wanted to put on the page were the stories of people who looked like me.
Sometimes you do have to laugh to keep from crying. And sometimes the world feels all right and good and kind of like it's becoming nice again around you. And you realize it, and realize how happy you are in it, and you just gotta laugh.
I don't want anyone to walk through the world feeling invisible ever again.
The strength of my mother is something I didn't pay attention to for so long. Here she was, this single mom, who was part of the Great Migration, who was part of a Jim Crow south, who said, 'I'm getting my kids out of here. I'm creating opportunities for these young people by any means necessary.'
I would have written 'Brown Girl Dreaming' if no one had ever wanted to buy it, if it went nowhere but inside a desk drawer that my own children pulled out one day to find a tool for survival, a symbol of how strong we are and how much we've come through.
If you know neither the enemy nor yourself, you will succumb in every battle
Declare the past, diagnose the present, foretell the future; practice these acts. _x000D_ As to diseases, make a habit of two things--to help, or at least to do no harm.
Every man should lose a battle in his youth, so he does not lose a war when he is old.
While waiting for a Moses to lead us into the promised land, we have forgotten how to walk.
The most exhausting thing you can do is to be inauthentic.
The arrogance of age must submit to be taught by youth.
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