the yak occidental

Here is a selection of memorable quotes from  Three Daughters of Eve by Elif Shafak  She refrained from talking about these issues with the pious, because once they noticed her vacillating between doubt and faith, they insisted on trying to win her over. The few atheists she had met were not so different. Whether in the name of God or science, there was no satisfaction for the ego quite like the satisfaction of converting someone to your side. p.85 She wrote in her God-diary: I’m perpetually in limbo. Maybe I want too many things at once and nothing passionately enough. p.86 In the name of religion they are killing God. For the sake of discipline and authority, they forget love. p.87 Why roots were rated so highly compared with branches or leaves, Peri had never understood. Trees had multiple shoots and filaments extending in every direction, under and above the ancient soils of the earth. If even roots refused to stay put, why expect the impossible from human beings? p.111 “B...

Here is a selection of memorable quotes from A Love Song For Ricki Wilde by Tia Williams  “To me, love is like listening to an album. Some people skip to their favourite songs and ignore the rest. Other people listen to the entire album over and over, until it’s familiar and cherished and they know every note by heart. That’s how Dr. Bennett and I loved each other. He was music I could listen to forever.” p. 15 It sounded like the instinctual ecstasy of you and your girl reaching for each other midsleep, barely conscious, not thinking, just feeling. Ezra “Breeze” walker played “Carolina Shout” like it was a torch song. It was jazz, but the blues, too. Rhythm and blues. p.47 It fascinated Ricki that she went out in the world with an actual cup of tea. Not a travel mug or a to-go tumbler. And it was her good china, as if she were entertaining guests in her parlour. It had the same chaotic confidence of a kid traipsing into first period with no backpack. p.56 You can’t cheat grief, Ri...

Just in time for Halloween, here are a few reminders (and an homage to my past self) that nothing is more terrifying than being a teen. Above: from The Chilling Adventures of Sabrina (Netflix) There is nothing like a horror film to reveal the culture anxieties of one’s time and place. And if horror has taught me anything, it is that nothing has been as enduringly terrifying across time and place as women’s bodies, as the bodies of all marginalized genders.  from "Salvation" in Dinner on Monster Island: Essays by Tania De Rozario   "So what am I now?" Lee says, teasing. Dodo sighs. Give Lee a hard look. "A monster. You and your friends, all of you. Pretty monsters. It's a stage all girls go through. If you're lucky you get through it without doing any permanent to yourself or anyone else. Are you sure you really want to do this to your friend? It's cruel, Lee. - from Pretty Monsters by Kelly Link I don’t know what it is about teenage girls that makes...

Here is a selection of memorable quotes from Dinner on Monster Island: Essays by Tania De Rozario  There is nothing like a horror film to reveal the culture anxieties of one’s time and place. And if horror has taught me anything, it is that nothing has been as enduringly terrifying across time and place as women’s bodies, as the bodies of all marginalized genders.  p.6 This body is not yours. This flesh is not yours. Beauty not as invitation, but as warning. p.76 Hair - usually long, black, and unruly — is a common motif in Asian Horror. It pours out of faucets in deep, dark waves. It descends from the ceiling like a noose. It clogs drains and pipes, blankets children in their sleep, floats limp in cups of tea. p.77 The sweet shorthand of Singlish, every expression of which fills an empty place in my heart. The intimacy of never having to explain that which is untranslatable. The fact that I never feel as articulate as I do when I code-switch between the “proper” English I wa...

Here is a selection of memorable quotes from  Be Quick - But Don’t Hurry!: Finding Success in the Teachings of a Lifetime by Andrew Hill with John Wooden   […] I firmly believe that the youth of today need role models more than critics […] p.188 Managing creativity is a far tougher challenge that requires flexibility, the ability to react and change quickly as market conditions fluctuate, and the skill to empower and nurture fragile egos […] Everyone talks about the need to employ “out-of-the-box” thinkers, but managers must realize that most people with the capacity for original thought are not comfortable in tight and rigid structure. You need to find the balance between creativity and organization” p.59 Coach was a great believer in quickness, which he explained by telling me, “when you learn something, you must be quick in implementing it. It’s like driving the freeway. You may know what to do, but if you don’t do it quickly, you may not be around very long.” p.71 One oth...

Here are a couple short, sweet quotes that remind me of the other. I think of them often. I think of them with love. I think of us with love. - from "Conflict Circle" in Dinner on Monster Island: Essays by Tania de Rozario She was a good kid. We were all good kids. Amen. - from A Complicated Kindness by Miriam Toews