I recently read A Hat Full of Sky by Terry Pratchett, and now I'm listening to the audio book (both excellent, by the way), and this little bit of dialog stuck out:
Tiffany didn't know what to reply except: "It shouldn't be like this."
"There isn't a way things should be. There's just what happens, and what we do."
This seems like a good quote for those times when life smacks you upside the head, and all you can think is "This isn't FAIR! Why is this happening to ME?" It's a very pragmatic way of looking at things. But I'm pairing it with another insight: years ago when someone I loved was in the midst of major difficulty, I was talking to a good friend about my feelings of helplessness. I said "And all I can do is pray." She said, "It's not ALL you can do, it's the BEST thing you can do."
I am going to have to check out Terry Pratchett - yours is the third recommendation in a two week period...
Posted by: Birgit | February 21, 2005 at 04:28 PM
It is a great quote, Gen.
Expectation/perception/reality/what is reality...?
I like this chain of thought...
Posted by: kimj | February 25, 2005 at 11:02 AM
Once again -
I agree with Birgit and Kim ...
Big surprise ...
Posted by: beth keck | March 03, 2005 at 12:27 PM