“Trust me on this one. I know this from personal experience.”

When you do what you want, not what you wish…’ said the first raven. ‘When you no longer seek your reflection in others’ eyes…’ said the second.

You probably will one day know what this kind of guilt and shame feels like. And when that time comes, I hope you have the strength…to take advantage of the fire and reshape your own sword.

Once upon a time, fairy tales were AWESOME!

Home is where you can be yourself.

So thirsty,” Jack groaned. “So worried,”said the frog. I hope we don’t starve to death.” “Yes,”said Jill, “not starving to death would be nice.”

“I dont know. You just can’t.” “Oh.” This is, of course, the kind of inane conversation that occurs when people are slowly losing their minds.

But beware, dear reader. For we go out into the wide, wild world, looking to change, looking to grow, looking for wisdom. But wisdom is hard to come by, and once achieved, it is very easily lost.

You see, Hansel and Gretel don’t just show up at the end of this story. They show up. And then they get their heads cut off. Just thought you’d like to know.

There is this weird thing that happens, when you stop worrying so much about what other people think of you…you suddenly start seeing what you think of you.

“So would not thirsting to death,” said Jack “Thirsting isn’t even a word,” said Jill “It isn’t?” “No.” “Then what’s the word?”

You see, to find the brightest wisdom one must pass through the darkest zones. And through the darkest zones there can be no guide. No guide, that is, but courage

When you see yourselves face to face…’ said the third. ‘Then,’ the ravens intoned in unison, ‘you will have found what you truly seek.

The oven became hotter and hotter, and Hansel began to sweat. Then a delicious smell wafted to his nostrils. Oh no! he thought. I’m cooking! He sniffed at the air. And I smell delicious!

There is a certain kind of pain that can change you. Even the strongest sword, when placed in a raging fire, will soften and bend and change its form..

Especially when one is leaving the wide, wild world – and returning to the place you once fled.

I hope that you never will, but, since you’re a person, and therefore prone to making horrible, soul-splitting mistakes

Sometimes the characters develop almost without your knowing it. You find them doing things you hadn’t planned on, and then I have to go back to page 42 and fix things. I’m not recommending it as a way to write. It’s very sloppy, but it works for me.

I had refused Emerson’s well-meant offers of assistance, knowing his efforts would be confined to moving the furniture to the wrong places and demanding how much longer the process would take.

Elizabeth lay face-down on the massage table, and allowed Marco to relieve the stress of the business day with firm and knowing fingers. Success, she decided, was often a matter of knowing when to relax.

She put her hand in his, and he clasped it firmly, knowing he had been waiting for her all his life.

A lot of what we experience as strength comes from knowing what to do with weakness. Nickel and Dimed On (Not) Getting By in America

Belgium, where there occurred one of the rare appearances of the hero in history, was lifted above herself by the uncomplicated conscience of her King and, faced with the choice to acquiesce or resist, took less than three hours to make her decision, knowing it might be mortal.

I’ve always supported myself. I like the sense of knowing exactly where I stand financially, but there is a side of me that longs for a knight in shining armor.

I invite people to examine their lives without negativity, knowing that it’s scary, but that not doing it is even scarier.