"There are many ways to embrace a wave in your ocean. Roll with it, let it shake your world. Capsize under it and come up for air when you are ready. Or just maybe you BE the wave – force indelible change on a complacent reality, shattering the notion of 'what is' and forcing it to be 'what used to be.'" — Lauren Bello Okerman Sisu Magazine, Issue 6, "Line and Wave"
"The carefree timelessness of my youth was rattled in my twenties. A kind of panic set in. Time became visible. Each choice I made began to feel more and more final, as if every choice was the death of all the others. Millions of doors were locking behind me as I passed them in the hallway. I felt that age thirty – adulthood – was coming like winter. Am I missing out? Am I making the right decisions? Am I becoming the person I want to be? It often dawns too late that we have only one life, only one path, and the choices we make become the story line of our lives." — Jedidiah Jenkins To Shake the Sleeping Self: A Journey from Oregon to Patagonia, and a Quest for a Life with No Regret
"The more years you spend on this planet, the more you realize that for all of the gains we have made, we’ve got so far to go. It’s like looking in the rear view mirror – what’s behind us is actually closer than it appears. Despite this unfortunate reality, we persevere with an unwavering courage, moving beyond the barriers created by others, by harnessing a fire that burns deep inside." — Jen Gurecki Sisu Magazine, Issue 1
"Experience is the hardest kind of teacher. It gives you the test first and the lesson afterward." — Oscar Wilde
"I couldn't reach this moment any sooner than now, because I've needed all my knowledge and experience to be standing here." — Jeremy Jones The Art of Shralpinism
"I am convinced that life is 10% what happens to me and 90% how I react to it. And so it is with you...we are in charge of our attitudes." — Charles Swindoll
"We shouldn’t believe that small wrongdoing can do no harm, because even a small spark can ignite a giant pile of hay. Similarly, the value of the smallest good deeds should not be underestimated, for even tiny flakes of snow, falling one atop another, can blanket the tallest mountains in pure whiteness." — Jamling Tenzing Norgay Touching My Father's Soul
"You don’t just give up. You don’t just let things happen. You make a stand! You say no! You have the guts to do what’s right, even when everyone else just runs away." — Rose Tyler Doctor Who, "The Parting of the Ways"
"Those who try know that strength and knowledge come with doing." — Elinore Pruitt Stewart Letters of a Woman Homesteader
"If your actions inspire others to dream more, learn more, do more, and become more, you are a leader." — John Quincy Adams
"Trusting yourself means living out what you already know to be true." — Cheryl Strayed Tiny Beautiful Things: Advice on Love and Life from Dear Sugar
"A smile can be a kind of yoga practice, yoga of the mouth. You just smile, even if you don’t feel joy. And after you smile, you’ll see you feel differently. Sometimes the mind takes the initiative, and sometimes you have to allow the body to take the initiative. ... If we are not able to smile, then the world will not have peace." — Thich Nhat Hanh How to Relax and Being Peace
"In our body there may be tension and pain. If we suppress or ignore this, then every day the tension and pain will grow and prevent us from experiencing the happiness that we should be able to experience. Mindfulness of breathing can help us relax and bring peace to our body. We take care of our body first. We can take care of our mind later." — Thich Nhat Hanh How to Relax
"Meditation has two aspects. The first is stopping (shamatha in Sanskrit). We run throughout our whole life, chasing after some idea of happiness. Stopping means to stop our running, our forgetfulness, and our being caught in the past or the future. ... We think that happiness and well-being aren’t possible in the present. If you can stop and establish yourself in the here and the now, you will see that there are many elements of happiness available in this moment. ... The second aspect of meditation is looking deeply (vipashyana in Sanskrit) in order to see the true nature of things. ... Mindfulness is the continuous practice of touching deeply every moment of daily life. To be mindful is to be truly present with your body and your mind, to harmonize your intentions and actions, and to be in harmony with those around you." — Thich Nhat Hanh How to Relax
"I am here for you. Sometimes ... our loved one is sitting beside us but we have forgotten all about [them]. ... Our loved one is there physically but it’s as if [they're] not truly there. To love someone, you need to be there one hundred percent. The mantra “I am here for you” says that I care about you, I enjoy being in your presence. It helps the other person to feel supported and happy. ... We think that our loved one will be with us forever and we forget how precious [their] presence is in this moment. Once we’re really there for the other person, that person becomes something very real. When the other person is real, [they are] a wonderful manifestation of life and we need to let [them] know that, for [their] happiness and for our own." — Thich Nhat Hanh How to Fight
"Learn to nourish yourself and your loved ones with joy. Sometimes a kind word or two are enough to help them blossom like a flower. ... Our loved ones and relationships are like flowers that need regular watering to stay fresh and alive. If we do not water the other person’s flowers, our love or the relationship may wilt or die." — Thich Nhat Hanh How to Fight
"When someone says something unkind to us and we don’t understand why, we may become upset. A knot is tied inside. ... We can learn the skill of recognizing a knot the moment it is tied in us, and we can find ways to untie it. If we give it our full attention as soon as it forms, while still loosely tied, untying it will be easy. Otherwise, it grows tighter and stronger with time and is more difficult to loosen. ... When you are in a new relationship, both people are still light, and have few knots. Misunderstandings are easy to clear up right away. But when we let things build up, many knots accumulate and we don’t know where to begin untying them. To protect each other’s happiness, we need to become aware of and communicate about our internal knots as soon as they arise." — Thich Nhat Hanh How to Fight
"When we’re overcome by strong emotions we’re like a tree in a storm, with its top branches and leaves swaying in the wind. But the trunk of the tree is solid, stable, and deeply rooted in the earth. When we’re caught in a storm of emotions, we can practice to be like the trunk of the tree. We don’t stay up in the high branches. We go down to the trunk and become still, not carried away by our thinking and emotions." — Thich Nhat Hanh How to Fight
"When you feel upset or angry, it’s important not to do or say anything. We need to calm down first. Don’t speak or act with the energy of anger in you. Just come back to your body and your breathing." — Thich Nhat Hanh How to Fight
"False: When things change, I will be happy. True: When I’m happy, things will change." — Kyle Cease
