“She may have been among them but she could never be one of them. She was without inclusion for-as-much as she was not one of the girls and she wasn t one of the guys. She was an outsider gazing in, endlessly comfortless, while they wished they had what it took to be less like the others and more like her.”
“... because one day, maybe one day, if I learned how to write clear enough, sing loud enough, be strong enough, I could explain myself in a way that made sense and then maybe one day, one day, someone out there would hear and recognise her or himself and I could let them know that they are not alone. Just like that song I had on repeat for several nights as I walked lonely on empty streets, let me know that I was not alone and that’s how it starts.”
“Being all alone is like the feeling you get when you stand at the mouth of a large river on a rainy evening and watch the water flow into the sea. Have you ever done that? Stand at the mouth of a large river and watch the water flow into the sea?”
“My alone doesn t always feel good, but I ll only have you if you re sweeter than my solitude”
“No matter how close people get, they never reach each other. Including us now. Even now, there s a place where each of us is alone.”
“Her upbringing had given her an independence of mind that made her more like a girl of today than one of her own time - which was why she had walked out, and why she was not daunted by the prospect of being alone.”
“Don’t you realize the Internet is just a way for millions of sad people to be completely alone together?”
“God did not create you to be alone. He deposited skills, knowledge, and talents in someone out there who is expected to mentor you, teach you and encourage you to go high. Go, get a mentor!”
“There was this constant urge in me to tear my insides apart, I didn t know why. By the time I made my mind that it was impossible for me to do, there alighted the fear, haunting me with the words that rang constantly in my head, You re not brave enough . I didn t feel devastated, I felt the urge to be devastated.”
“me ... no me .. gone is gone , and i m gone .. alone is alone .. it s so bad to feel alone , but i m alone .. me , no more .. no more exist , but i don t exist , not anymore ! Good morning”
“They were almost never alone, and now that they almost-practically were, he felt kind of frantic for her attention.”
“The faery lady looked at Hettie curiously from beneath her wig. You know... she said, very softly. All I wanted was that you would be my friend. That isn t very much to ask, is it? Doesn t everyone in the Smoke Lands have a friend? Doesn t everyone have someone? She smiled pitifully and looked away. I wanted a little person who would be mine, because no one else is. Life is so lonely when one lives as long as we do, in such a horrible, horrible house. But you never wanted to be my friend. You never, ever did.”
“Just five minutes, God, I chant like some hostage negotiator on the brink of a resolution. Five minutes alone. Please, please. Please.”
“There were two and only two messages that could have been comprehended by what he said. But neither of them was soothing; neither of them was a lie.”
“I think maybe bad things seem worse when people are alone. When they can turn that bad thought over and over in their head, polishing it like a stone, until it shines dark and black. Maybe the key to making things better is being with other people. Little by little, smiles and laughter and hugs can chip away at any dark stone, even if it’s as big as a boulder to start. Then finally, bit by bit, it shrinks until it’s no bigger than a pebble, something that even I could kick down the road.”
“If more people understood how nice it is to have a sense of home that extends past our locked doors, past our neighbors padlocks, to the local food co-op and library, the sidewalks busted up by old trees - if we all held home with longer arms - we d live in a very different place... We wouldn t feel so alone, no matter the size of our houses or our bank accounts, no matter whether we had good health or congestive heart failure. We would begin to see that each moment presents an opportunity to relax, to notice that the wind has shifted and a storm is coming, or that our friend s toddler has decided to wear dinner instead of eating it. We would see that each minute counts for something timeless and, if we want, we all can find our way inside these big, tiny, moments.”
“Find joy in the faces of children who view life as so magical. Give thanks every day for your life and for your existence. Your life matters, you matter. So many people think and care about you and you’re never really alone! Remember your loved ones are the real gift. I care about you; you have a friend in me. Look forward to knowing that next year is going to be even better than the last…”