Elizabeth Forsythe Hailey Quotes & Sayings

We are all so much more complicated than we allow ourselves to appear. — Elizabeth Forsythe Hailey

I know now one must plan one's old age as surely as one plans any other stage of life. The tragedy of Cousin Josie's life is that she never knew what she wanted at any age - only what she did not want. She never wanted to marry nor to pursue a career, and in life, unlike grammar, double negatives do not produce an affirmative. — Elizabeth Forsythe Hailey

Sometimes being a good mother gets in the way of being a good person. — Elizabeth Forsythe Hailey

Life causes estrangement enough - why do we add to it out of misplaced pride? — Elizabeth Forsythe Hailey

Sometimes I think it is ... frustration with life as it is lived day to day that compels me to write such long letters to people who seldom reply in kind, if indeed they reply at all. Somehow by compressing and editing the events of my life, I infuse them with a dramatic intensity totally lacking at the time, but oddly enough I find that years later what I remember is not the event as I lived it but as I described it in a letter. — Elizabeth Forsythe Hailey

But a piece of paper can be a powerful presence. I have always had enormous respect for the written word and invariably find a letter more revealing than a face-to-face conversation. In a strange way I suspect I will get to know you better at a distance than I would if you had stayed at home ... — Elizabeth Forsythe Hailey

Whenever life gets to be too much for me, I have a hard time keeping my eyes open. Sleeping is cheaper and safer than drinking. It keeps you from saying or doing things you'll regret later, and though you may have nightmares, you won't wake up with a hangover. I recommend it wholeheartedly. — Elizabeth Forsythe Hailey

After tonight I will not date put pen to paper again. A blank page to me is like a drink to an alcoholic. — Elizabeth Forsythe Hailey

Would that we could soar forever beyond the reach of earth, away from the dangers that await us the moment we alight. — Elizabeth Forsythe Hailey

Time is a cruel thief to rob us of our former selves. We lose as much to life as we do to death. — Elizabeth Forsythe Hailey

Though my own life is filled with activity, letters encourage momentary escape into other lives, and I come back to my own with greater contentment. — Elizabeth Forsythe Hailey

There is nothing like champagne to ensure sweet dreams. — Elizabeth Forsythe Hailey