Grief, as I read somewhere once, is a lazy Susan. One day it is heavy and underwater, and the next day it spins and stops at loud and rageful, and the next day at wounded keening, and the next day numbness, silence. Anne Lamott More Quotes by Anne Lamott More Quotes From Anne Lamott You own everything that happened to you. Tell your stories. Anne Lamott happened stories Teenagers who do not go to church are adored by God, but they don't get to meet some of the people who love God back. Anne Lamott teenager inspirational people ...the three things I cannot change are the past, the truth, and you. Anne Lamott three-things three past You are desperate to communicate, to edify or entertain, to preserve moments of grace or joy or transcendence, to make real or imagined events come alive. But you cannot will this to happen. It is a matter of persistence and faith and hard work. So you might as well just go ahead and get started. Anne Lamott persistence hard-work real Any plot you impose on your characters will be onomatopoetic: PLOT. I say don't worry about plot. Worry about the characters. Let what they say or do reveal who they are, and be involved in their lives, and keep asking yourself, Now what happens? The development of relationship creates plot. Anne Lamott plot worry character I still encourage anyone who feels at all compelled to write to do so. I just try to warn people who hope to get published that publication is not all it is cracked up to be. But writing is. Anne Lamott writing trying people Perfectionism is the voice of the oppressor; the enemy of the people. It will keep you insane your whole life. Anne Lamott positivity voice positive Radical self-care is quantum, and radiates out into the atmosphere, like a little fresh air. Anne Lamott atmosphere self air Grace is the light or electricity or juice or breeze that takes you from that isolated place and puts you with others who are as startled and embarrassed and eventually grateful as you are to be there. Anne Lamott grateful light grace ...because when people have seen you at their worst, you don't have to put on the mask as much. Anne Lamott mask worst people Writing and reading decrease our sense of isolation. It's like singing on a boat during a terrible storm at sea. You can't stop the raging storm, but singing can change the hearts and spirits of the people who are together on that ship Anne Lamott reading heart writing The opposite of faith is not doubt, it’s certainty. Anne Lamott doubt-and-certainty doubt opposites It was not facing what life dealt that made you crazy, but rather trying to set life straight where it was unstraightenable. Anne Lamott crazy made trying Certainty is missing the point entirely. Anne Lamott certainty missing And that almost everyone was struggling to wake up, to be loved, and not feel so afraid all the time. That's what the cars, degrees, booze, and drugs were about. Anne Lamott car drug struggle My heart was broken and my head was just barely inhabitable Anne Lamott my-heart broken heart My gratitude for good writing is unbounded; I’m grateful for it the way I’m grateful for the ocean. Anne Lamott gratitude grateful ocean Almost all good writing begins with terrible first efforts. You need to start somewhere. Anne Lamott effort writing needs One of the gifts of being a writer is that it gives you an excuse to do things, to go places and explore. Another is that writing motivates you to look closely at life, at life as it lurches by and tramps around. Anne Lamott writing giving looks I used to tell my writing students that they must write the books they wished they could come upon - because then the books they hungered and thirsted for would exist. Anne Lamott students writing book
