—I’M SURE THE BUTTERFLIES ARE HAPPY TO SEE YOU

   

…Here it is, a big, beautiful new year looming.  Question is, what’re you going to do with it?

…It’s a dance, this question and answer thing.  It’s a little bit like life that way.

…There is pain and struggle in opening your heart, and it takes time.  If you want the grass to grow, it doesn’t help if you’re pulling on the grass.

…It’s important that people don’t give up on themselves.  Easier said than done, I know.

…Learning to love your imperfections is one of the keys to feeling satisfied.

…The other key is not letting the old man in.

…“Hope is part of the human tool kit.  We need it to go on in the face of negative odds.  I’m probably an inherently hopeful person.  If I weren’t, why would I write?  Think how much hope is involved.  You hope your book will be good.  You hope you will finish it.  You hope it will be published.  You hope the perfect reader will come across it, and find all the bread crumbs you’ve dropped in the forest, and also find some meaning or delight in them.  That’s a lot of hope.”—Margaret Atwood

…You know what?  Everything comes in waves, and you’ve got to believe that you’ll get another good wave if you wait long enough for it.

…Thinking you’re invincible only works when you’re young.  After that, your body tells you the truth.

…There’s pride that comes in working at something for an extended period of time.  Persistently working at one’s craft, day after day, year after year, can be one of life’s greatest accomplishments.

…“I’m somebody who has gone through pretty major depression spells.  A lot of them have been after the Olympic Games, coming off that high.  It’s something we’ve worked on for four years, and afterward you’re like, ‘Now what the hell am I supposed to do?’  You’re just completely lost.  And as somebody who was an athlete, where I’m supposed to be this big, macho, we-don’t-have-any-problems, everything’s-perfect, we-don’t have-any-weaknesses guy, I found it really taking me to this point of depression and suicidal thoughts.  I think that I’m happy now because I forced myself to become vulnerable, to make myself go through this experience and learn from it—to find out why is this happening.  I think for the longest time, I wasn’t really showing all of who I was.  And I guess it all goes back to being strong.”—Michael Phelps

…There may be significant things to learn about people by learning the things that irritate them.

…There is a lesson in trying to find the right words for things.

…“Children are life’s great context.  Parenthood really does make you something more.  It asks you questions that no one is ever ready for, and that you’re always for ready for.”—Donald Glover

…The problem with clichés is not that they contain false ideas, but rather that they are superficial articulations of very good ones.

…Wanting to sound like other people is not without its temptations.

…Sometimes you have to lie to get to the greater truth.

…There is no better way of proving a friendship than by being accepting.

…If you don’t write poetry, try putting a bunch of it in your life.

…If you smile, does the camera really know if you’re happy?

…Take a look at yourself, then try eating something.

…I know it’s not up to you, but you could still make a little effort.

…It’s supposed to snow.

…Any other questions?

—NO STRINGS, NO MAGIC TRICKS

…A little insomnia is not without its value.

…If you only remember the good stuff, you might as well get a lobotomy.

…In the end what matters most is how well you lived, how well you loved, and how well you learned to let go.

…But for that, we have to figure out who we are first.

…Learning how to suffer more successfully seems to be the key.

…It only matters because it matters now.

…It’s kind of terrible to keep a bird in a cage.  They were meant to fly, and so were you.

…There is an art to making people feel better, and usually it takes a lot of practice.

…So, what if, instead of thinking about solving your whole life, you just fixed a few broken pieces first?  Wouldn’t that be a good strategy?

…How was your Christmas?  Mine was nice, but those ghosts still showed up from time to time during the day.  So sly and stealth they still are, after all these years.

…Little by little, day by day, what is meant for you will find its way.  Or so I’ve heard.  Or so I’d like to believe.

…Don’t forget you’re human.  It’s okay to have a meltdown.  Just don’t unpack and live there.

…Even in my most desperate moments, I have never conceived of anything more horrible than the inside of a jail cell.

…The acknowledgement of our mortality encourages us to reevaluate our priorities.

…I wish I was the kind of person who could hear God speak.  I’ve tried lots of times, but it never seems to work for me.  I must be doing it wrong, or else God has nothing to say to me.

…The truth is, I’m still figuring out what I want to be when I grow up.

…If you believe the Bible, the thing about Global Warming is it’s supposed to happen.  The world is supposed to burn to a crisp.

…Perfecting the art of small talk is something I’m not good at.  I like small talk as much as I enjoy fake-laughing at a bad joke.

…It’s not something I’m proud of, but I was a pretty believable liar when I was a kid.  That’s how I got through it all.  It was the biggest key to my survival.

…Sometimes there’s so much to think about that it’s like having an ant hill inside your head.  All that scurrying.  All those tunnels and caves collapsing.

…When two people part, it is the one who is not in love that makes the tender speeches.

…The truth is, reasons to be inconsolable abound.

…My good friend Cabernet called me greedy, but still it’s nice to have friends who can be that honest with me.

…Sometimes I feel a lot like all that rain falling down.

…Dear God.  Please make this next year the best one for everyone involved.