Tsukiyama X Quotes & Sayings

When you're young, you can excuse many things, hoping they will strengthen with time. — Gail Tsukiyama

But how will I know it's my destiny?'
'Like love it will possess you ... You can't help but know. — Gail Tsukiyama

It takes the same amount of energy to worry about the worst thing that can happen as it does to hope for the best. It's up to you to choose. — Gail Tsukiyama

Just remember, Every day of your lives, you must always be sure what you're fighting for. — Gail Tsukiyama

Sometimes I felt like I would go insane not having the answers to such simple questions. Of course, it was always hardest during the night, then the darkness stole away any signs of hope. — Gail Tsukiyama

Mothers and their children are in a category all their own. There's no bond so strong in the entire world. No love so instantaneous and forgiving. — Gail Tsukiyama

I also find doing the mundane, everyday things in life has a calming, creative influence on me. Some of my best ideas come when I'm vacuuming or waiting in lines. — Gail Tsukiyama

I'm not going to protect you by being your shield or armor, but I'll be the dagger hidden below your pillow. — Sui Ishida

Nothing ever stands still, and neither should you. — Gail Tsukiyama

We can't run away from what defines our fates. Who we are and what we believe in grow from the roots of our past, no matter how much we might try to deny it. — Gail Tsukiyama

Near the gardens, Pei stopped and caught her breath. She liked sweet-voiced Song Lee and hoped for the best in dealing with the other sisters, but Pei rememered all too well the different personalities that had affected her life, first at the girls' house, then at the silk factory and sisters' house. Dealing with so many people was often like playing a game of chess. There were so many pieces, all moving in different directions. It was always wise to guard all sides against capture. — Gail Tsukiyama

He seemed to have a story no one had bothered to discover — Gail Tsukiyama

Wei cleared his throat and said, "Have you heard the saying 'The wise adapt themselves to circumstances, as water molds itself to the pitcher'? It seems I've been the pitcher most of my life. I've forgotten how to be fluid. It feels as if I'm finally learning now," he said. — Gail Tsukiyama

When I'm in the midst of finishing a book, I can be working around the clock. — Gail Tsukiyama

Fear seems to be the ruling judge. — Gail Tsukiyama

Do you think a champion is made out of thin air? It's through the hardships you endure that you'll gain real strength. — Gail Tsukiyama

When the water boiled, Michiko poured it into the pot of green leaves and we both waited in the thick silence. I felt strangely calmed by this simple ritual I had seen my mother do many hundred times before. It was all that seemed to make sense in this place and I held on to it as if I were drowning. — Gail Tsukiyama

The things you remember about a person when they're gone are funny. No two people will feel the same way, though usually it has to do with scent, or expression, the sound of a voice, an unusual gesture. For me, I can still see the colors of Keiko; the black of her hair against creamy pale skin, her dark blue kimono with white circles, the deep orange persimmons falling from the brown basket she carried. The ache in my heart grows larger every time I think of these colors, and how as each day passes they continue to fade from my eyes. — Gail Tsukiyama

It takes greater courage to live. — Gail Tsukiyama

Please, Matsu-san,' I told him, not long after the house was completed. 'I don't wish to have any flowers.'
Never once did he question me. I needed my life to be simple without any beauty to remind me of all I had lost. And though I had not told him that, Matsu must have seen it in my eyes. 'Don't worry, Sachi,' he said, 'there will be no flowers. — Gail Tsukiyama

Don't ever think that just because you do things differently, you're wrong. — Gail Tsukiyama

Sometimes you can't let go of the past without facing it again. — Gail Tsukiyama

To be noble, ... was to account for the life you lived, to always account for your mistakes, and to have dignity and worth. — Gail Tsukiyama

Every so often I was overwhelmed by a phantom pain that cut through me like a knife. I was certain that if I looked down I would find blood all over, like the knife I once held in my hands, but it was all in my mind. — Gail Tsukiyama

To read and write will help you understand life ... to sew and mend will help you survive it. — Gail Tsukiyama

You don't need to blame yourself just because you've hurt someone, just like when you're walking you can't really blame yourself to crush some ants... that's what being stronger ones means. — Sui Ishida

Success is not handed to you. You must work hard for it and you must never dishonor what you've achieved. — Gail Tsukiyama

During the day, if I don't have any other commitments, I'm usually at my desk writing, revising, or researching anywhere from four to six hours. — Gail Tsukiyama

We live a short enough time on this earth. A man should do what he loves. — Gail Tsukiyama

The eyes mirror the heart of a person. An entire life can be seen through them. Love, sorrow, deceit, pain. If you look closely, it's all there. — Gail Tsukiyama