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In Them, She Saw The Sham Of Her Life Laid Out Like A Book, The Foolish Belief That She, That Anyone, Could Escape The Consequences Of This World, Could Flee From Death. That Was The Deceit. The True Serpent In The Garden.

-Libba Bray

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In Them, She Saw

Libba Bray

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In Them, She Saw The Sham Of Her Life Laid Out Like A Book, The Foolish Belief That She, That Anyone, Could Escape The Consequences Of This World, Could Flee From Death. That Was The Deceit. The True Serpent In The Garden.

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I Changed The World; The World Changed Me. Everything You Do Comes Back To You. When You Affect A Situation, You Are Also Affected.

They Would Place Their Hands Together Inside The Circle So That They Could Walk In Each Other's Dreams. It Forged A Bond That Could Not Be Broken. The Circle Represents Love In Eternity. For There Is No Beginning And No End.

I Do Not Want To Pass The Time. I Want To Grab Hold Of It And Leave My Mark Upon The World.

Didn't You Have Any Sadistic Nannies Who Told You These Tales To Keep You Quiet And Well Behaved At Night? Heavens, What's To Become Of The Empire If Governesses Have Lost Their Touch For Scaring The Wits Out Of Their Girls?

There Are No Wrong Decisions ― Only Different Ones.

As One, They Leap, Laughing, And That Is Where We Leave Them - Mouths Open, Arms Spread Wide, Fingers Splayed To Take In The Whole World, Bodies Flying High In Defiance Of Gravity, As If They Will Never Fall.

I've Never Done Acid, Finding It Hard To Go Willingly To A Place That Could Be Frightening, Hellish, And Totally Beyond My Control. A Place Much Like High School.

Just Once I’d Like To Meet A Fella Who Isn’t A Phony. Somebody Who Doesn’t Wanna Buy Me A Fur So He Can Show Me Off To His Boys.

Reason Was For Suckers And Presbyterians.

He Took Comfort In The Neon Signs, The Wild Strands Of Jazz Creeping Out Of Clubs Whenever Happy Swells Of People Pushed Through The Doors In Their Finery.

No One Had Ever Said Anything Like That To Evie. Her Parents Always Wanted To Advise Or Instruct Or Command. They Were Good People, But They Needed The World To Bend To Them, To Fit Into Their Order Of Things. Evie Had Never Really Quite Fit, And When She Tried, She’d Just Pop Back Out, Like A Doll Squeezed Into A Too-small Box.

They Have Money And Position And Ann Has None.it's Amazing How Often You Can Be Right As Long As You Have Those Two Things Working In Your Favor.

Because You Don't Notice The Light Without A Bit Of Shadow. Everything Has Both Dark And Light. You Have To Play With It Till You Get It Exactly Right.

I'm Sorry, Gemma. But We Can't Live In The Light All Of The Time. You Have To Take Whatever Light You Can Hold Into The Dark With You.

It's Knowing I'll Never Have What She Has--a Beauty So Powerful It Brings Things To You. I Fear I Will Always Have To Chase Things I Want. I'll Always Have To Wonder Whether I'm Truly Wanted Or Whether I've Just Been Settled For.

I Had A Friend Who Said, "you Don't Have An Internal Critic. You Have An Internal Sadist."

Because You Can't Keep Up The Illusion Forever," I Say. "no One Has That Much Magic.

Gemma~was He Really Looking At Me That Way? Kartik~what Way? Gemma~like A Piece Of Ripe Fruit? Katrik~you'd Best Be On Your Guard With Him.

If You Tell Them What They Want To Hear, They Don't Bother To Try To See.

Did You Hear? You Are Free." Yessss. Choice. It Is A Fine Thing. And I Choose To Take You Back, Most High.

We Sit And Listen And Are Enthralled Anew, For Good Stories, It Seems, Never Lose Their Magic.

Reality Is A State Of Mind. To The Banker, The Money In His Ledger Book Is All Very Real, Though He Doesn't Actually See It Or Touch It. But To The Brahma, It Simply Doesn't Exist The Way The Air And The Earth, Pain And Loss Do. To Him, The Banker's Reality Is Folly. To The Banker, The Brahma's Ideas Are As Inconsequential As Dust.

The Wolf Was At The Door. His Shadow Spilled Into The Room, Taking It Over.

They Misspelled 'party.' How Evil Genius Can They Be?

We All Walk In A Land Of Dreams. For What Are We But Atoms And Hope, A Handful Of Stardust And Sinew? We Are Weary Travelers Trying To Find Our Way Home On A Road That Never Ends. Am I A Part Of Your Dream? Or Are You But A Part Of Mine?

A Pair Of Blue Noses On The Next Bench Glared Their Disapproval At Evie’s Knee-length Dress. Evie Decided To Give Them A Real Show. She Hiked Her Skirt And, Humming Jauntily, Rolled Down Her Stockings, Exposing Her Legs. It Had The Desired Effect On The Blue Noses, Who Moved Down The Platform, Clucking About The “disgrace Of The Young.” She Would Not Miss This Place.

It's So Laughable That It's Somewhere Beyond Comedy And Right Into Tragedy Again.

Might. Is There Any Opiate More Powerful Than That Word?

The Dull Pain Of Truth Weights My Soul, Pulling It Under. I Am Left Hopelessly Awake.

I Have Done What They Expected Of Me. I Have Curtsied For My Queen And Made My Debut. This Is What I Have Anticipated Eagerly For Years. So Why Do I Feel So Unsatisfied? Everyone Is Merry. They Haven't A Care In The World. And Perhaps That Is It. How Terrible It Is To Have No Cares, No Longings. I Do Not Fit. I Feel Too Deeply And Want Too Much.

Helloooo." Miss Ohio Rolled Her Eyes. "i'm From The Buckeye State. We Are Serious About Our Tailgating Parties. I Can Turn Anything Into A Grill.

You Know What Else Is Hot?" Said A Nameless Blonde As She Put Her Arm Around The One Black Girl. "what?" "bisexuals." "totally. Well, Not Like Real Bisexuals Who Are Just Sort Of Your Everyday People, But, Like, The Kind Of Bisexuals You See In Magazines Wearing Nothing But Body Paint And Kissing Both Boys And Girls To Promote A New Single." "totally, Totally Hot.

We're All Damaged Somehow."-a Great And Terrible Beauty

Why Does Anyone Do Anything? Belief. A Belief That They Are Right And Just In Their Actions. Abraham Was Willing To Sacrifice His Son, Isaac, Because He Believed That God Had Commanded It. To Kill Your Son Is Unthinkable. A Crime. But If You Are Acting In The Belief That Your God, Your Supreme Deity Whom You Must Obey, Has Demanded It Of You, Is It Still A Crime?

It Isn't That We Do What We Want. It's That We're Allowed To Want At All.

Free The Snow Globes!

Adina Appealed To The Sky. "we Asked For Rescue And You Sent Us Incompetent Rockstar Pirates With A Broken Ship And Perfect Abs?" "thank You, God," Petra Said.

Wanna Rock You, Girl, With A Butterfly Tunic. / No, I'm Not Gay, I'm Just Your Emo Enuch. / Gonna Smile Real Shy, Won't Cop A Feel, / 'cause I'm Your Virgin Crush, Your Supersafe Deal. / Let Those Other Guys Keep Sexing. / You And Me, We Be Texting / 'bout Unicorns And Rainbows And Our Perfect Love. / Girl, We Fit Together Like A Hand In A Glove. / Now I Don't Mean That Nasty, Tell Your Mum Don't Get Mad. / I Even Wrote 'you're Awesome' On Your Maxi Pads.

I Will Never, Ever Drink Whiskey Again. From Now On, It's Strictly Sherry.

What Took You So Long?” Will Asked When Evie Came Panting Into The Room. He And Jericho Had Assembled A Stack Of Books, Which They Were Tucking Into Will’s Attaché Case. “i Walked To Jerusalem For The Bible. I Knew You’d Want An Original,” Evie Snapped.

A Man Bumps Me On His Busy Way Without So Much As An Apology. But That Is All Right. I Forgive You, Busy Man About Town With The Sharp Elbows. Hail And Farewell To You! For I, Gemma Doyle, Am To Have A Splendid Christmas In London Town. All Shall Be Well. God Rest Us Merry Gentlemen. And Gentlewomen.

Naughty John, Naughty John, Does His Work With His Apron On. Cuts Your Throat And Takes Your Bones, Sells 'em Off For A Coupla Stones.

She Shrieks Above The Din. "if You Wish A Battle, I Shall Give It. I Am The Last Of My Kind. I Shall Not Lie Down Without A Fight.

There Are Always Rebels And Radicals, I Suppose,' Mccleethy Allows. 'those Who Live On The Fringes Of Society. But What Do They Contribute To The Society Itself? They Reap Its Rewards Without Experiencing Its Costs. No. I Submit That Loyal, Hardworking Citizens Who Push Aside Their Own Selfish Desires For The Good Of The Whole Are The Backbone Of The World. What If We All Decided To Run Off And Live Freely Without Thought Or Care For Society's Rules? Our Civilization Would Crumble. There Is A Joy In Duty And A Security In Knowing One's Place...it Is The Only Way.

I'm Just Saying It's Not All Sand Castles And Ninjas.

Women Who Have Power Are Always Feared.

I Don't Have Time To Feel Sorry For Myself. I've Got To Think.

Because It Is Morning, It Is Morning, And There Is So Much To See.

It's Only His Thumb Brushing Slowly Across The Lower Edge Of My Lip, But It's As If Time Slows And The Sweep Of That Thumb Below My Mouth Takes Forever. It Is No Spell That I Know Of, But It Holds Such Magic, I Can Scarcely Breath. He Pulls His Hand Away Fast, Aware Of What He's Done. But His Touch Lingers.

War." Gorgon Spits The Word. "that Is What They Call It To Give The Illusion Of Honor And Law. It Is Chaos. Madness And Blood And The Hunger To Win. It Has Always Been Thus And Shall Always Be So.

So Much Of The Literature We Had To Read For High School English Class Was Filled With Victimized, Tragic, Symbolic Women Who Spurred The Plot Forward With Their Inevitable Shunning/death/shunning-followed-by-pregnancy-followed-by-death Timelines.

I Invited Myself. Thought This Table Needed Some Class.

I Am Creating An Atmosphere! Oh, Unc, We’ve Finally Got Bodies In This Joint! Paying Bodies. We Could Have A Good Racket Going Here.” “i’m Not Interested In A ‘racket.’ I’m An Academic.” “that’s Okay, Unc. I Won’t Hold It Against You.

I Hate This Place,” Tiara Whimpered. “it’s Super Creepy. Like A Haunted Chuck E. Cheese’s Where The Games All Want To Kill You And You Never Get Your Pizza.

Beauty, Grace, And Charm My Foot. It's A School For Sadists With Good Tea-serving Skills.

We've Left The Moment. It's Gone. We're Somewhere Else Now, And That's Okay. We've Still Got That Moment With Us Somewhere, Deep In Our Memory, Seeping Into Our Dna. And When Our Cells Get Scattered , Whenever That Happens, This Moment Will Still Exist In Them. Those Cells Might Be The Biulding Block Of Something New. A Planet Or Star Or A Sunflower, A Baby. Maybe Even A Cockroach. Who Knows? Whatever It Is, It'll Be A Part Of Us, This Thing Right Here And Now, And We'll Be A Part Of It.

You Have A Steady Fella?” Sam Asked After A Bit. “no Fella Can Hold Me For Long.” Sam Gave Her A Sideways Glance. “that A Challenge?” “no. A Statement Of Fact.

And That Is How Change Happens. One Gesture. One Person. One Moment At A Time.

We're Still Expected To Color Within The Lines Of Accepted Femininity, And Women Who Step Out Of Those Lines Are Usually Attacked, Whether Verbally Or Physically.

Any Book That Can Help You Survive The Slings And Arrows Of Adolescence Is A Book To Love For Life; 'the Catcher In The Rye' Did Just That, And I Still Do Love It.

We Have Work To Do If You Are Not To Be A Total Failure Like High-waisted, Acid-wash Jeans.

I Love You For Who You Are, Not Who The World Thinks You Should Be.

Petra Turned To Her. "everybody Lies About Who They Are. Name One Person Here Who Isn't Doing That And I Will Drop Out Right Now!" Shanti Felt That Snake Of Truth Coil Around Her Legs, Threatening To Squeeze. "i Didn't Mean..." "no One Ever Does." Petra Said, Shoving The Baton Back At Shanti.

I Refuse To Let The Past Find Me Here.

I'm Going To Eviscerate You And Leave Your Organs On A Pike In The Yard As A Warning To Those Who Wear Large Jewelry.

Agent Jones Switched To The Big Screen And A Grainy Video Of Momo Sitting At His Enormous Desk, A Swivel-hipped Elvis Clock Ticking Behind His Bewigged Head. 'death To The Capitalist Pigs! Death To Your Cinnamon Bun-smelling Malls! Death To Your Power Walking And Automatic Car Windows And I'm With Stupid T-shirts! The Republic Of Chacha Will Never Bend To Your Side-of-fries -drive -through-please-oh-would-you-like-ketchup-with-that Corruption! Momo B. Chacha Defies You And All You Stand For, And One Day, You Will Crumble Into The Sea And We Will Pick Up The Pieces And Make Them Into Sand Art.

Maybe Girls Need An Island To Find Themselves. Maybe They Need A Place Where No One's Is Watching Them So They Can Be Who They Really Are

Time Has No Meaning. I Feel As If I Have Been Left In The Desert To Die And Am Eagerly Awaiting The Vultures To Begin Their Work And End My Misery.

He Frowns. "a Dance With The Carnivorous Felicity? Why? Has She Eaten All The Other Available Gentlemen?

There In The City's Steam-and-smoke-smudged Harbor Is The Most Extraordinary Sight Of All: A Great Copper-clad Lady With A Torch In One Hand And A Book In The Other. It Is Not A Statesman Or A God Or A War Hero Who Welcomes Us To This New World. It Is But An Ordinary Woman Lighting The Way- A Lady Offering Us The Liberty To Pursue Our Dreams If We've The Courage To Begin.

Around Us The Night Creatures Have Their Say. We Are Surrounded By A Symphony Of Crickets And Frogs. Neither Of Us Feels The Need To Speak, And I Suppose That Is One Of The Qualities I Find Comforting In Kartik. We Can Be Alone Together.

Prepared To Fly, Even If She Has To Loose Her Legs To Do It

Wow, You're Awesome And The Universe Loves A Winner, So The Universe Must Really Love You!

When The Music Is Over, She Keeps Her Head Down Till She Finds Her Seat Again, And I Wonder How Many Times Each Day She Dies A Little.

Theta Blew Out Another Plume Of Cigarette Smoke. “not Interested. Love’s Messy, Kiddo. Let Those Other Girls Get Moony-eyed And Goofy. Me? I Got Plans.

Cigarette Smoke

Scoring Well On Tests Is The Sort Of Happy Thing That Gets The School District The Greenbacks They Crave. Understanding And Appreciating The Material Are Secondary.

...i Do Have To Wonder What Sort Of Childhood The Grimm Brothers Endured. They Are Not A Merry Bunch Of Storytellers, What With Their Children Roasted By Witches, Maidens Poisoned By Old Crones, And Whatnot.

Im A Techno Moron. I Need Help Just To Plug In My Video Camera.

I'd Like To Thank Readers. Every Time You Open A Book, It Is A Strike Against Ignorance. Unless You're Reading Sarah Palin.

In A World Like This One, Only The Random Makes Sense.

There Is A Dualism Inherent In Democracy--opposing Forces Pushing Against Each Other, Always. Culture Clashes. Different Belief Systems. All Coming Together To Create This Country. But This Balance Takes A Great Deal Of Energy.

I Shan't Ever Understand Your Willingness To Lie Down And Die," Felicity Bars. "if You Won't At Least Try To Fight, I Have No Sympathy For You.

You’ve Been Assigned An Identity Since Birth. Then You Spend The Rest Of Your Life Walking Around In It To See If It Really Fits. You Try On All These Different Selves And Abandon Just As Many. But Really It’s About Dismantling All That False Armor, Getting Down To What’s Real. -going Bovine

Write Like It Matters, And It Will.

These Are Hard Times. The World Hurts. We Live In Fear And Forget To Walk With Hope. But Hope Has Not Forgotten You. So Ask It To Dinner. It's Probably Hungry And Would Appreciate The Invitation.

Jeez, Someone Needs To Push The Reset Button On This Planet.

In Books, The Truth Makes Everything Good And Fine. The Good Prevail. The Wicked Are Punished. There Is Happiness. But It's Not Like That Really, Is It?" "no," I Say. "i Suppose It Only Makes Everything Known.

Libraries Are The Torch Of The World, Illuminating The Path When It Feels Too Dark To See. We Mustn't Allow That Torch To Be Extinguished.

Please Do Not Strain Yourself, Miss Doyle. I Won't Have My Girls Going Cross-eyed In The Name Of Art.

On The Bowery, In The Ornate Carcass Of A Formerly Grand Vaudeville Theater, A Dance Marathon Limps Along. The Contestants, Young Girls And Their Fellas, Hold One Another Up, Determined To Make Their Mark, To Bite Back At The Dreams Sold To Them In Newspaper Advertisements And On The Radio. They Have Sores On Their Feet But Stars In Their Eyes.

Oh, I've A Love, A True, True Love, Who Waits Upon Yon Shore... And If My Love Won't Be My Love, Then I Will Live No More.

Kartik Places A Sovereign In The Lady's Cup, And I Know That It's Likely All He Has. "why Did You Do That?" I Ask. He Kicks A Rock On The Ground, Balancing It Nimbly Between His Feet Like A Ball. "she Needed It." Father Says It Isn't Good To Give Money To Beggers. They'll Only Spend It Unwisely On Drink Or Other Pleasures. "she Might Buy Ale With It." He Shrugs. "then She'll Have Ale. It Isn't The Pound That Matters; It's The Hope...i Know What It's Like To Fight For Things That Others Take For Granted.

Evie Didn’t Mind Yelling, But She Hated Feeling Judged. It Got Under Her Skin And Made Her Feel Small And Ugly And Unfixable.

The Man In The Shop Peered Disapprovingly At Evie Through The Glass. She Pumped Her Arms And Legs Up And Down In Imitation Of A Marching Band, Gave The Man A Salute, And Continued Her Meandering Walk To The Museum.

I'm Like Everyone Else In This Stupid, Bloody, Amazing World. I'm Flawed. Impossibly So. But Hopeful. I'm Still Me.

Who But The Mad Would Choose To Keep On Living? In The End, Aren't We All Just A Little Crazy?

If This Were A Movie, I Would Bust A Secret Move So Fierce The Entire Place Would Be Razed To The Ground. I'd Finish With Something Snappy Like "and Don't Forget My Soda, Punk" While I Strolled Off Into The Night.

A Gentle Breeze Catches In The Branches Then And I Hear It, Soft And Low, A Murmured Prayer--gem-ma, Gem-ma--and Then The Leaves Bend Down And Trail Delicate Fingers Across My Cold Cheeks.

Judge Not, Lest Ye Be Judged.

The Mere Suggestion Of Fame And Fortune Casts A Glamour All Its Own. It Is Rather Alarming How Quickly People Will Turn Someone Else's Fiction Into Fact In Order To Support Their Own Fictions Of Themselves.

My Dad Was A Presbyterian Minister. Yes, I Am One Of Those Dreaded P.k.s - Preachers Kids. Be Afraid.

You Are Absolute Angels Of The First Order. If I Were Pope, I’d Canonize You.” “the Pope Would Probably Love To Turn A Cannon On You!

There Were Few Things Worse Than Being Ordinary, In Evie’s Opinion. Ordinary Was For Suckers.

Sheep. I'm Stuck In A Boarding School Filled With Sheep.

Why Does Everyone Want To Own Me?" Pippa Mumbles. She's Got Her Head In Her Hands. "why Do They All Want To Control My Life -- How I Look, Whom I See, What I Do Or Don't Do? Why Can't They Just Let Me Alone?" "because You're Beautiful," Ann Answers, Watching The Fire Lick Her Palm. "people Always Think They Can Own Beautiful Things.

...i Took Advanced Powerpoint Last Semester. You Guys Are Always Misunderestimating Me. I'm Totally Ready To Handle The Big Stuff.

Sometimes I See Things, I Think. Out Of The Corner Of My Eye, Taunting Me, And Then It’s Gone. And Dreams. Such Horrible Dreams. What If Something Terrible Happened To Me? What If I Am Damaged?" The Rain Is A Cool Kiss On My Sleeve As I Link My Arm With Hers. "we’re All Damaged Somehow.

Pastoralia By George Saunders. Possibly My Favorite Book. Its One Of The Weirdest Books Ive Ever Read. If Monty Python And Thomas Pynchon Had A Love Child, And It Was Raised By Frank Zappa On A Weird Commune, That Would Be This Book.

Clothing Left On The Bed Unfolded. Books Stained With Coffee Spots. Tabs Not Paid Until The Last Possible Second. Boys Kissed And Then Forgotten In A Week’s Time.

A Guy's Gotta Live, You Know, Gotta Make His Way And Find His Meaning In Life And Love, And To Do That He Needs Coffee, He Needs Coffee And Coffee And Coffee.

I Will Tell You The Story Of How We Found Ourselves In A Realm Where Dreams Are Formed, Destiny Is Chosen, And Magic Is As Real As A Handprint In The Snow.

What Makes A Girl A Girl? What Makes A Guy A Guy? Do You Have To Be What They Want You To Be? Or Do You Stop And Listen To That Voice Inside You? I Know Who I Am. I'm Petra West. And I'm A Girl. You Want Me To Sleep Somewhere Else, Fine. Whatever. But I'm Not Going To Pretend To Be Somebody I'm Not. I've Done Enough Of That.

What Do You Feel? I’ve Never Been Asked This Question Once. None Of Us Has. We Aren’t Supposed To Feel. We’re British.

People Will Believe Anything If It Means They Can Go On With Their Lives And Not Have To Think Too Hard About It.

Sometimes We Seek That Which We Are Not Yet Ready To Find.

I'm Sorry,' He Says Simply. 'people Make Mistakes, Gemma. We Take The Wrong Action For The Right Reasons, And The Right Action For The Wrong Reasons.

There Are Times When One Friend Requires The Blind Faith Of Another.

If God Has Nothing Better To Do Than Punish Schoolgirls For A Bit Of Tomfoolery, Then I've No Use For God.

She Smiled As Sweetly As A Show Poster For The Glorified, All-american Ziegfeld Girl Just Before Dumping Her Second Cigarette Into Wally’s Fresh Cup Of Coffee.

Reminds Us That Greatness Lies Even In The Smallest Of Moments, In The Humblest Of Hearts, And We Shall, Each Of Us, Be Called To Greatness. Whether We Shall Rise To Meet It Or Let It Slip Away Is The Challenge Put Before Us All.

It Keeps Her Purity Vacum-sealed To Preserve Its Freshness For Her Future Husband.

I Am Starting A Collection Of Only Right-hand Gloves. It’s Ever So Bourgeois To Have Two.

One Could Argue That It's Romantic To Die For Love. Of Course, Then You're Dead And Unable To Take That Honeymoon Trip To The Alps With All The Other Fashionable Young Couples, Which Is A Shame.

The World Expected Girls To Pluck And Primp And Put On Heels. Meanwhile, Boys Dressed In Rumpled T-shirts And Baggy Pants And Misplace Their Combs, And Yet You Were Suppose To Fall At Their Feet? Unacceptable.

I Stare At The Pile Of Discarded Remnants And Think Of My Mother. Did She Touch That Pillar There? Does Her Scent Still Linger In A Fragment Of Glass Or A Splinter Of Wood? A Terrible Emptiness Settles Into My Chest. No Matter How Much I Go About Living, There Are Always Small Reminders That Make The Loss Fresh Again.

We've Barley Stepped Into The Bright Glow Of The Realms When Everything Goes Dark.

Just Because You're Funny Doesn't Mean You Get To Be Cruel.

When The World Moves Forward Too Fast For Some People, They Try To Pull Us All Back With Their Fear.

I Know Because I Read...your Mind Is Not A Cage. It's A Garden. And It Requires Cultivating.

He Said To Tell You To Remember Your Heart In All Things, That It Is Where Your Honor And Your Destiny Will Be Found. Does It Mean Anything To You?' It Is Something He Would Say From Time To Time-that The Eye Could Be Misled, But That The Heart Was True.

We Don't Look At Each Other Anymore. Not Really. Not Since I Pulled Him From That Opium Den. Now When I Look At Him, I See The Addict. And When He Looks At Me, He Sees What He Would Rather Not Remember. I Wish I Could Be His Adored Little Girl Again, Sitting At His Side.

She Was Too Much—for Zenith, Ohio. She’d Tried At Times To Make Herself Smaller, To Fit Neatly Into The Ordered Lines Of Expectation. But Somehow, She Always Managed To Say Or Do Something Outrageous—she’d Accept A Dare To Climb A Flagpole, Or Make A Slightly Risqué Joke, Or Go Riding In Cars With Boys—and Suddenly She Was “that Awful O’neill Girl” All Over Again.

Next Time We See You, You’ll Be On Trial For Some Ingenious Crime!” Dottie Said With A Laugh. Evie Grinned. “just As Long As They Know My Name.

Maybe That's What Real Friendship Is -- Getting So Used To People That You Need To Be Annoyed By Them.

The Wind Picks Up. It Sends Leaves Scurrying For Cover Until A Softer Breeze Blows Through, Settling Them Down Again As If To Say, Shhh, There, There, It's All Right. One Leaf Still Dances In The Air. It Spins Higher And Higher, Defying Gravity And Logic, Stretching For Something Just Out Of Reach. It Shall Have To Fall, Of Course. Eventually. But For Now, I Hold My Breath, Willing It To Keep Going, Taking Comfort In Its Struggle.

Travel Opens Your Mind As Few Other Things Do.

Think: Who Has Vans, Huh? Soccer Moms And Serial Killers.

What Did I Do To Make Mommy Leave?” “you Didn’t Do Anything. This Isn’t Your Fault.” “then Why?” She’d Wailed. “i Don’t Know,” Her Daddy Had Said, And He Looked So Sad. “it Isn’t Fair!” “no, It Isn’t, Baby. Not By A Mile. The World’s Only As Fair As You Can Make It. Takes A Lot Of Fight. A Lot Of Fight. But If You Stay In Here, In Your Own Little Cave, That’s One Less Fighter On The Side Of Fair.

Do Not Be Tempted By English Roses. Their Beauty Fades, But Their Thorns Are Forever.

Hi. I’m From Arkansas, The Cantaloupe State. And Tonight, I Hope You Will Hold My Melons Close To Your Heart And Vote Me Your Miss Teen Dream.

Everyone Seems To Want More Form Me. I Am A Thoroughly Disappointing Girl Around. I Shall Wear A Scarlet 'd' Upon My Bosom For All To See So That They Will Know Not To Raise Their Expectations.

What Hamlet Suffers From Is A Lack Of Zombies. Let Us Say Rosencrantz And Guildenstern Show Up—ho-ho! Now You’ve Got Something That Stirs The, Um, Something That Stirs Things That Are Stirrable. Boom! A Pack Of Ravenous Flesh-eaters Breaks Open Their Heads And Sucks Out Their Eyeballs. No Need For Iambic Pentameter Because They Are Grunting, Groaning Annihilators Of Humanity With No Time For Meter. You’re Not Asleep In The Back Of English Class Anymore, Are You? This Is What I’m Talking About. Zombies. Learn It, Live It, Love It.

Board The Cows! We've Come To Enslave Your Marigolds.

We're Like Pretty Horses, And Just As On Horses, They Mean To Put Blinders On Us So We Can't Look Left Or Right But Only Straight Ahead Where They Would Lead.

Any Librarian Or Scholar Will Tell You: Close Is Not The Same As Accurate.

When She Can't Bring Me To Heal With Scolding, She Bends Me To Shape With Guilt.

I’m From The Health Department. You’ve Heard Of Typhoid Mary? This Fella’s Got Enough Typhoid To Start His Own Colony.

I Thought Research Would Be More Glamorous, Somehow. I'd Give The Librarian A Secret Code Word And He'd Give Me The One Book I Needed And Whisper The Necessary Page Numbers. Like A Speakeasy. With Books.

The Line Between Faith And Fanaticism Is A Constantly Shifting One,” Dr. Poblocki Said. “when Does Belief Become Justification? When Does Right Become Rationale And Crusade Become Crime?

I Don't Think You Should Die Until You're Ready. Until You've Wrung Out Every Last Bit Of Living You Can.

Travel Opens Your Mind As Few Other Things Do. It Is Its Own Form Of Hypnotism, And I Am Forever Under Its Spell

J.t Woodland, Known As “the Cute One” In The Corporation’s Seventh-grade Boy Band, Boyz Will B Boyz. Due To The Success Of Their Triple-platinum Hit, “let Me Shave Your Legs Tonight, Girl,” Boyz Will B Boyz Ruled The Charts For A Solid Eleven Months Before Hitting Puberty And Losing Ground To Hot Vampire Boyz.

People Aren't Always What You Want Them To Be

Books Are, At Their Heart, Dangerous. Yes, Dangerous. Because They Challenge Us: Our Prejudices, Our Blind Spots. They Open Us To New Ideas, New Ways Of Seeing. They Make Us Hurt In All The Right Ways. They Can Push Down The Barricades Of ‘them’ & Widen The Circle Of ‘us.

Oh, I Didn't Think It Wise To Hide It. Might Not Be Able To Find It Again," I Say, Cheerily. "it's Sitting In Plain View On Your Chair In The Great Hall. I Do Hope That Was The Best Place For It.

She Never Utters A Sound Even When She's Crying, And That Makes Me A Little Sad. Doesn't Seem Right. When You Cry, People Should Hear You. The World Should Stop.

Adina Gave A Little Shriek. "that Fish Just Swam Past My Leg! Creepy! Where Did It Go?" "to Your Right! Two O'clock! Get It!" "you Are Officially The Most Bloodthirsty Vegetarian Ever.

The World Is A Lie...not You And Me.

Gonzo Narrows His Eyes. 'how Often Do You Clean That Thing?' 'every Night,' The Waitress Answers. Her Smile Is Strained. 'that's It? Do You Know How Long It Takes For Listeria To Grow Under Those Hot Lamps, Even With Ice?' Here We Go. 'it Can Happen In Just Five Hours. Five Hours And You've Got The Salad Bar Of Death!' The Waitress Looks Confused. 'from Listerine?

There's A Lot About Discovering Who You Are And How Difficult That Is. And It Never Stops.

Discovering Who You Are

Meraa Mitra Yahaan Aaiye," He Murmurs. I Understand Only A Little Hindi, Enough To Know What He Has Said: Come Here, My Friend. I've Never Known A Braver Girl," He Says.

I'm Floating Inside My Skin. I Could Go On Floating Like This For Days. Right Now, The Real World With Its Heartbreak And Disappointments Is Just A Pulse Against The Protective Membrane We've Drunk Ourselves Into. It's Somewhere Outside Us, Waiting." A Great And Terrible Beauty, Page 141, By

In Them, She Saw The Sham Of Her Life Laid Out Like A Book, The Foolish Belief That She, That Anyone, Could Escape The Consequences Of This World, Could Flee From Death. That Was The Deceit. The True Serpent In The Garden.

There Is An Ancient Tribal Proverb I Once Heard In India. It Says That Before We Can See Properly We Must First Shed Our Tears To Clear The Way.

Amen, Sister, ... All Apologies To Tom Cruise.

Theta Crashed Next To Them On The Thick Zebra-skin Rug. “i’m Embalmed.” “potted And Splificated?” “ossified To The Gills. Time For Night-night.

I've Heard It Said That God Is In The Details. It's The Same With The Truth. Leave Out The Details, The Crucial Heart, And You Can Damn Someone With The Bare Bones Of It.

But If We Are To Remain A Great Empire, We Must Have A Greater Understanding Of The Hearts And Minds Of Others.

To Those Who Will See, The World Waits.

Or Perhaps It Is Some Combination Of Spirit And Desire, Love And Hope, Some Alchemy That We Each Possess And Can Put To Use, If We First Know Where To Look Without Flinching.

What If Evil Doesn't Really Exist? What If Evil Is Something Dreamed Up By Man, And There Is Nothing To Struggle Against Except Out Own Limitations? The Constant Battle Between Our Will, Our Desires, And Our Choices?

It Occurs To Me That Cricket Is Not The True Sport In London - Gossip Is.

Heaven's Brightest And Best-loved Angel, Who Was Cast Out For Inspiring A Rebellion Against God. Having Lost Heaven, Lucifer And His Rebel Angels Vowed To Continue Fighting Here On Earth." "i Don't Understand Why He Had To Fight. He Was Already In Heaven." "true. But He Wasn't Content To Serve. He Wanted More." "he Had All He Could Ask For, Didn't He?" Ann Asks. "exactly." Miss Moore States. "he Had To Ask. He Was Dependent Upon Someone Else's Whim. It's A Terrible Thing To Have No Power Of One's Own. To Be Denied.

My Cholera's Acting Up Again.

What --- You Don't Believe In True Love?" Petra Asked. "the Kind That Can Then Be Parlayed Into Awesome Merchandising Opportunities?" - "beauty Queens

We're In English Class, Which For Most Of Us Is An Excruciating Exercise In Staying Awake Through The Great Classics Of Literature. These Works - Groundbreaking, Incendiary, Timeless - Have Been Pureed By The Curriculum Monsters Into A Digestible Pabulum Of Themes And Factoids We Can Spew Back On A Test. Scoring Well On Tests Is The Sort Of Happy Thing That Gets The School District The Greenbacks They Crave. Understanding And Appreciating The Material Are Secondary.

He Smiles Sadly. "now I Know My Destiny." "what Is It?" "this." He Draws Me In To Him In A Kiss. His Lips Are Warm. He Pulls Me Tighter In His Embrace. The Roots Sigh And Release Their Hold On My Waist And The Wound In My Side Is Healed. "kartik," I Cry, Kissing His Cheeks. "it's Let Me Go." "that's Good," He Says. He Makes A Small Cry. His Back Arches, And Every Muscle In His Body Tightens.

I Must Remember To Forgive Myself. Because There's An Awful Lot Of Gray To Work With. No One Can Live In The Light All The Time."-a Great And Terrible Beauty

She Loved Attention. It Was Like A Glass Of The Best Champagne—bubbly And Intoxicating—and As With Champagne, She Always Wanted More Of It. Still, She Didn’t Want To Seem Like An Easy Mark. “if You Must Know, I’ve Come To Join A Convent,” Evie Said, Testing Him.

Life Don’t Come To You, Memphis. You Gotta Take It. We Have To Take It. Because Ain’t Nobody Handing It To Us.

All The Small, Simple, Conscious Acts Of Living A Sudden Defense Against The Dying We Do Every Day.

You Are Unique, And This Is A Beautiful, Beautiful Thing, Grasshopper.

How Do People Stay In Love, Anyway? Is It A Choice? Or Is It Like Those Plants We Studied In Biology That Mutate Into Something New And Totally Different But Are Still Part Of The Same Plant Family?

Dude, This Is A Stoner Conversation And We're Not Even High

How Can My Ankles And Arms Be Obscene?

I've Had So Many Bikini Waxes, I Cry Every Time I See A Popsicle Stick.

Everything Is Randomly Connected.

I Am A Jumble Of Passions, Misgivings, And Wants. It Seems That I Am Always In A State Of Wishing And Rarely In A State Of Contentment.

Will Was Making A Speech, Something About Having Been Young And Careless Once, The Sort Of Thing Old-timers Said When They Issued A Deathblow, As If They Thought Their Sanctimonious Ramblings Disguised As Empathy Would Be Welcomed, But Evie Was Only Half Listening.

We're Comfortable With Women In Certain Roles But Not Comfortable With Women Expressing Anger Or Fully Accepting Their Power. The Most Daring Question A Woman Can Ask Is, 'what Do I Want?'

All Things Are Possible.

Did God Ever Cry Over His Lost Angel, I Wonder?

I've Never Been In Love. I Will Die Without Knowing What It Feels Like To Need To See One Person's Face When You Go To Sleep At Night, To Crave Seeing It When You Wake Up. I Wish I Knew.

People Think Boundaries And Borders Build Nations. Nonsense-words Do. Beliefs, Declarations, Constitutions-words. Stories. Myths. Lies. Promises. History

You Don't Know Me, Dude," He Says, Not Smiling This Time. Gonzo Examines His Cards, Prepping For His Next Move. "people Always Think That They Know Other People, But They Don't. Not Really. I Mean, Maybe They Know Things About Them, Like They Won't Eat Doughnuts Or They Like Action Movies Or Whatever. But They Don't Know What Their Friends Do In Their Rooms Alone At Night Or What Happened To Them When They Were Kids Or If They Feel ****ed Up For No Reason At All.

Hey,” The Cabbie Yelled. “how’s About A Tip?” “you Bet-ski,” Evie Said, Heading Toward The Old Victorian Mansion, Her Long Silk Scarf Trailing Behind Her. “don’t Kiss Strange Men In Penn Station.

Ain't That A Sight? With All The Things We Know And Learn, We Still Ain't Touched The Big Mysteries -- Where We Come From, Where We Go Next, Why We Even Her. And When Something Truly Miraculous Happens, We Run And Hide In Our Caves. We Deny.

He Told Me That Once, In The War, He’d Come Upon A German Soldier In The Grass With His Insides Falling Out; He Was Just Lying There In Agony. The Soldier Had Looked Up At Sergeant Leonard, And Even Though They Didn’t Speak The Same Language, They Understood Each Other With Just A Look. The German Lying On The Ground; The American Standing Over Him. He Put A Bullet In The Soldier’s Head. He Didn’t Do It With Anger, As An Enemy, But As A Fellow Man, One Soldier Helping Another.

Cash Or Check?” He Said Cheekily. Even The Dullest Ohio Girls Knew That Bit Of Lingo: Kiss Now Or Kiss Later? “bank’s Closed, Pal.

Do You Think They Missed Him Terribly When He Fell? Did God Cry Over His Lost Angel, I Wonder?

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