Life with most teenagers was like having a low-grade bladder infection. It hurts, but you had to tough it out.
Anne LamottRead
I write because writing is the gift God has given me to help people in the world.
Interpretation
The quote emphasizes the purpose of writing as a tool to assist and uplift others, recognizing it as a divine gift.
Anne Lamott's quote highlights the profound connection between writing and service to humanity. It suggests that the act of writing is not merely a personal endeavor, but a calling that allows the writer to contribute positively to the lives of others, reflecting the belief that one's talents can be used for a greater good.
In practice
In a writing workshop to encourage aspiring authors.
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.
Poems mesmerized me, and I felt better when I was writing them, or trying to - more in touch with something deep and dark within myself.
Writers do not live one life, they live two. There is the living and then there is the writing. There is the second tasting, the delayed reaction.
Quite simply, my writing life has been one of relish, challenge, excitement.
I'd like to get something together - like a Handel, Bach, Muddy waters, flamenco type of thing. If I could get that sound, I'd be happy
So I try to re-invent my own eye every time I tackle a new subject. But it's hard, because everybody has style. You can't help it.
You can't trust an artist that just makes good records.
Subscribe for the occasional hand-picked quote. No noise.