Susan Wittig Albert Quotes & Sayings

Our stories arise from our hearts and our souls. In this sense, telling our stories becomes a sacred gesture, opening a clear way to that deep, ecstatic center where we are most uniquely our selves, individual and unique, and yet are ourselves, joined together at the heart. — Susan Wittig Albert

Sharing our stories can also be a means of healing. Grief and loss may isolate us, and anger may alienate us. Shared with others, these emotions can be powerfully uniting, as we see that we are not alone, and realize that others weep with us. — Susan Wittig Albert

The worst thing about talk ... is that there's no way to lay it to rest. Every fresh breeze brings a new speculation. — Susan Wittig Albert

Living in a culture that prefers to shut out the dark, avoid shadows, and anesthetize pain means that many people are isolated ... Family, friends, and co-workers, fearful of the dark, are reluctant to participate in our shadow experience and may urge us to be done with the dark before it is done with us. — Susan Wittig Albert

One person's weed is another person's wildflower. — Susan Wittig Albert

Gratitude is the richest, most joyful feeling humans are privileged to experience. — Susan Wittig Albert

We are the only ones who can tell our stories because we are the only ones who have lived them. — Susan Wittig Albert

Never ask, never get," the dog replied. "Never try, never taste. Never taste, never enjoy. — Susan Wittig Albert

Music keeps time and defies time, simultaneously. — Susan Wittig Albert

Does that mean you're prepared to deal with whatever turns up? People aren't sometimes. When they learn the real truth, they're all of a sudden content to live with a lie. — Susan Wittig Albert

I am often surprised when I think to count my graces, for the more I count, the more there seem to be. And if pride in my accomplishments is the emotion that I naturally feel when I focus on my gifts, gratitude is the emotion I feel as I become aware of the many graces that have shaped me and my gifts. — Susan Wittig Albert

Maude regards the ones who don't make it as her own personal failures. "I guess I didn't put enough emphasis on 'until death do you part,'" she says sourly, whenever she hears about the latest divorce. "Sad to say, but some are in it just for the good times. Married folks, they gotta be like that cat's claw acacia I've got growin' in my yard. Gotta grab hard and hold on tight when the going gets rough. Only way to get through the bad times. Grab hard, hold on, and ride. No matter what. — Susan Wittig Albert

The healing that can grow out of the simple act of telling our stories is often quite remarkable. Even more remarkably, this healing is not just our own healing, it is the healing of all women. That's why, as we tell our stories to ourselves, it is also important to share them with others. This sharing brings a sense of kinship, of sisterhood. We understand that we are not alone in our efforts to become conscious, whole, healthy persons. — Susan Wittig Albert

But as it turned out, the two had a great deal in common, for both Bailey and Thackeray (named for the famous novelist William Makepeace Thackeray, author of Vanity Fair) were devoted bibliophiles who believed that "a book a day kept the world at bay," as Thackeray was fond of saying. Bailey was the offspring of a generation of badgers who insisted that "Reader" was the most rewarding vocation to which a virtuous badger might be called and who gauged their week's anticipated pleasure by the height of their to-be-read pile. (Perhaps you know people like this. I do.) — Susan Wittig Albert

There is nothing like a grocery list to remind us how human we are. — Susan Wittig Albert

If I'd known how the week was going to turn out I would have sent it back first thing Monday and asked for a refund. — Susan Wittig Albert