“It takes courage to be yourself when everyone expects you to be someone else.”
―
Camille Pagán,
I'm Fine and Neither Are You
“Life is devastating, if only in its limited run; but it’s incredibly good, too.” ― Camille Pagán, Life and Other Near-Death Experiences
“It’s permanence that distinguishes grief from other emotional pain. The unfixable nature of never—that’s what makes it so terrible to bear.” ― Camille Pagán, Life and Other Near-Death Experiences
“It takes guts to stop fretting about the unknown and concentrate on the present moment.” ― Camille Pagán, Life and Other Near-Death Experiences
“There was nothing I could do to change what had happened, but I could not stop myself from desperately wishing I could rewind my life and do it all over in a way that was the exact opposite of my past.” ― Camille Pagán, Life and Other Near-Death Experiences
“Think about what you want out of the situation, not how you feel about it.” ― Camille Noe Pagán, The Art of Forgetting
“But here before me was a good man. It struck me that I had yet to hear him say a negative word about another person. Even if he was describing a terrible action, like his father’s inability to care for his family in the way that they needed, he spoke in terms of the event, rather than blaming the person. I loved people like this, and encountered so very few.” ― Camille Pagán, Life and Other Near-Death Experiences
“Yet I’ve come to understand that the way I will truly honor my mother’s memory is not with a big act, but through my daily choices: to be compassionate with myself, even when my will is weak and my body fails me; to give myself freely to those I love, even when it means my heart may be broken; and to live fully and completely while I have the chance—just as my mother did.” ― Camille Pagán, Life and Other Near-Death Experiences
“in order to function, most people have to ignore reality, or at least most of it.” ― Camille Pagán, Life and Other Near-Death Experiences
“Once you love someone that way, you love them forever. That's just how it goes.” ― Camille Pagán, Forever is the Worst Long Time
“Being something for someone else is a perfectly good waste of a life, isn’t it?” ― Camille Pagán, Forever is the Worst Long Time
“Love me when I'm at my worst. Love me when you don't agree with me, and when this no longer feels new and surprising. Love me through it all.” ― Camille Pagán, Forever is the Worst Long Time
“As much as we crave a concise, linear narrative, life happens as it will, often in a haphazard fashion that feels anything but finished. We must cobble together our most important moments and call them our story.” ― Camille Pagán, Forever is the Worst Long Time
“To have been placed on this planet with you...at the same time...is the gift of my life.” ― Camille Pagán, Forever is the Worst Long Time
“Damn it, if only life came with a rewind button. I would do it all so very differently.” ― Camille Pagán, I'm Fine and Neither Are You
“Look beyond what is missing and be thankful for all that remains.” ― Camille Pagán, I'm Fine and Neither Are You
“Change was a privilege reserved for people whose families didn’t rely on them for food, shelter, and health insurance. I thought she’d know that by now.” ― Camille Pagán, I'm Fine and Neither Are You
“This is not a test. Life is messy and sometimes tragic and often just plain hard for a woman to weather. But when you step back for a moment, the whole of it is incredibly beautiful—and that is what we must choose to focus on.” ― Camille Pagán, I'm Fine and Neither Are You
“His theory is that in order to function, most people have to ignore reality, or at least most of it. Otherwise, all of the horrible things in life—child slavery, acts of war, the pesticides jam-packed into every other bite of food you put in your mouth, knowing that you’re a day closer to dying when you open your eyes each morning—would be so overwhelming that no one would ever get out of bed. “But for you, Libby,” said Paul, “the whole world is filled with kittens and rainbows and happy endings. It’s very cute and probably helps you sleep at night.” ― Camille Pagán, Life and Other Near-Death Experiences
“Life is devastating, if only in its limited run; but it’s incredibly good, too.” ― Camille Pagán, Life and Other Near-Death Experiences
“It’s permanence that distinguishes grief from other emotional pain. The unfixable nature of never—that’s what makes it so terrible to bear.” ― Camille Pagán, Life and Other Near-Death Experiences
“It takes guts to stop fretting about the unknown and concentrate on the present moment.” ― Camille Pagán, Life and Other Near-Death Experiences
“There was nothing I could do to change what had happened, but I could not stop myself from desperately wishing I could rewind my life and do it all over in a way that was the exact opposite of my past.” ― Camille Pagán, Life and Other Near-Death Experiences
“Think about what you want out of the situation, not how you feel about it.” ― Camille Noe Pagán, The Art of Forgetting
“But here before me was a good man. It struck me that I had yet to hear him say a negative word about another person. Even if he was describing a terrible action, like his father’s inability to care for his family in the way that they needed, he spoke in terms of the event, rather than blaming the person. I loved people like this, and encountered so very few.” ― Camille Pagán, Life and Other Near-Death Experiences
“Yet I’ve come to understand that the way I will truly honor my mother’s memory is not with a big act, but through my daily choices: to be compassionate with myself, even when my will is weak and my body fails me; to give myself freely to those I love, even when it means my heart may be broken; and to live fully and completely while I have the chance—just as my mother did.” ― Camille Pagán, Life and Other Near-Death Experiences
“in order to function, most people have to ignore reality, or at least most of it.” ― Camille Pagán, Life and Other Near-Death Experiences
“Once you love someone that way, you love them forever. That's just how it goes.” ― Camille Pagán, Forever is the Worst Long Time
“Being something for someone else is a perfectly good waste of a life, isn’t it?” ― Camille Pagán, Forever is the Worst Long Time
“Love me when I'm at my worst. Love me when you don't agree with me, and when this no longer feels new and surprising. Love me through it all.” ― Camille Pagán, Forever is the Worst Long Time
“As much as we crave a concise, linear narrative, life happens as it will, often in a haphazard fashion that feels anything but finished. We must cobble together our most important moments and call them our story.” ― Camille Pagán, Forever is the Worst Long Time
“To have been placed on this planet with you...at the same time...is the gift of my life.” ― Camille Pagán, Forever is the Worst Long Time
“Damn it, if only life came with a rewind button. I would do it all so very differently.” ― Camille Pagán, I'm Fine and Neither Are You
“Look beyond what is missing and be thankful for all that remains.” ― Camille Pagán, I'm Fine and Neither Are You
“Change was a privilege reserved for people whose families didn’t rely on them for food, shelter, and health insurance. I thought she’d know that by now.” ― Camille Pagán, I'm Fine and Neither Are You
“This is not a test. Life is messy and sometimes tragic and often just plain hard for a woman to weather. But when you step back for a moment, the whole of it is incredibly beautiful—and that is what we must choose to focus on.” ― Camille Pagán, I'm Fine and Neither Are You
“His theory is that in order to function, most people have to ignore reality, or at least most of it. Otherwise, all of the horrible things in life—child slavery, acts of war, the pesticides jam-packed into every other bite of food you put in your mouth, knowing that you’re a day closer to dying when you open your eyes each morning—would be so overwhelming that no one would ever get out of bed. “But for you, Libby,” said Paul, “the whole world is filled with kittens and rainbows and happy endings. It’s very cute and probably helps you sleep at night.” ― Camille Pagán, Life and Other Near-Death Experiences
