All Quotes By Tag: Preservation

“Trust is not a gasoline-soaked blanket that succumbs to the matches of betrayal, never able to be used for its warmth again; it’s a tapestry that wears thin in places, but can be patched over if you have the right materials, circumstances, and patience to repair it. If you don’t, you’re always the one who feels the coldest when winter comes.”

“Some social ills are preserved by the common misbelief that things such as ignorance, greed, and stupidity do not have the stamina required to reach old age.”

“I better go,” Carter squeezed me once more and stood, grabbing his wallet from the coffee table. “I need to hit up the lottery if I want to get you out of this mess. Will you let me buy a monkey if we win, though?””Only if you buy me an island off the coast of Fiji.””You crazy-ass woman. A monkey is so much cooler than an island.””How about a monkey IN Fiji?””Now there’s a woman after my own heart,” Carter slapped his hand to his chest, sighing dramatically. “I’ll let you know if we win.” He started for the door.”Uh huh.””You’ll know if we do. I’ll be the one streaking on Pike Street.”

“Hey Kate, you coming to our show Friday night?” He leaned in close and touched my shoulder. “The guys would love to see you there.””Yes. Yes, the guys would indeed.” Carter rolled his eyes and smirked. I held back my grin, well aware that he was laughing inwardly at the same thing I was. When Dean spoke of ‘the guys,’ he mostly meant himself. With a body like a Ken doll and hair like Meredith’s McDreamy, I couldn’t figure out for the life of me what he wanted with me.”

“Well, in the meantime, Carter and I have been discussing the matter of Ryan.” This time it wasn’t the clang of a pan I heard, but instead a messy smack–the contact of Carter’s backhand with Dean’s head, I presumed. “Just hear me out. You have options. I have an Italian uncle. He’ll make sure Ryan is sleeping with the fishes by next week.””Dean!” Unable to repress my amusement, my eyes flew wide and my grin grew.”Either that, or we can go all Sweeney Todd on him and–“”Oh, will you stop?” My laughter was crippling. “There will be no calls to your uncle and no trip to the barber shop–please, leave Sweeney Todd out of it.”

“What do you see when you look at me?”My eyes narrowed and I pressed my lips together, weighing my thoughts. All of his bimbo admirers aside, what did I see? What did my gut tell me about this man? What did it say that allowed me to wind up here with him, under such impulsive circumstances?“You’re a sad man,” I swallowed. “You’re arrogant and set in your ways, but that creates a fortress for you. It’s your safe haven. Behind the moat is someone who has lost something he loved, only I’m not sure what, or who. You’re afraid of something and your loyalty is hidden away in a cell, wounded by betrayal.” I rested my head on the pillow. “That’s what I see.”“On second thought,” he exhaled, letting his head drop next to mine. “You’re psychic.”

“Stumbling closer, I held up the manuscript, the pages flapping frantically in the wind. “I take it this is a murder mystery? You killed the ex-fiancée and thanked her in the dedication? Mighty dignified of you, I must say.”“Nah. It’s a horror novel. But yeah, the bimbo dies in the end. Bob Hall says it’s going to be a bestseller, so I figured I owed her some thanks for the inspiration.” He edged a few feet closer, his smile spread from ear to ear. The glimmer in his eyes flickered toward the ocean, breaking our connection. He hung his head, licked his lips, then returned his eyes to mine, restoring the connection with an intense smolder. “Are you gonna get over here, or what?”Letting out a soft chuckle, the tears began to blind me. “Make me.”

“I winked and locked my arm in Carter’s, and we stood there, watching Dean stroll away.”You know the guy’s never gonna give up,” Carter nudged me, letting out a sigh.”We’d have really pretty babies, huh?””Yup. They’d be rad little Brangelinas, running around tearing the place up.””Yeah, you’re right. My rejection is such a disservice to the world…”

“Is there a problem, Ms. Parker? Something you want to say to me?” Reaching for his tie, he began to loosen it, unraveling it with his fingers, angry eyes still locked on mine.”I’m not sure I like being your pet. Or science project, I don’t know which.””You have a smart mouth.””You make smart observances.””You’re going to make this invitation difficult, aren’t you?””If you’re dishonest with me, yes.””You’ll regret it if you don’t accept.””Is that a threat?””That’s a promise.”

“The second he slipped inside of me, all I’d doubted, questioned, or feared evaporated, leaving me with one single, definite truth–I’d fallen in love with him in an all-consuming blaze that would blind me if I wasn’t careful. We fit together like poorly cut puzzle pieces, but when the edges joined and were positioned just right, our scattered images came together to create a solid, deliberate piece of art, completely crystal clear and in focus. I was a goner.”

“We stand now where two roads diverge. But unlike the roads in Robert Frost’s familiar poem, they are not equally fair. The road we have long been traveling is deceptively easy, a smooth superhighway on which we progress with great speed, but at its end lies disaster. The other fork of the road — the one less traveled by — offers our last, our only chance to reach a destination that assures the preservation of the earth.”

“The creation of man is evidence for the love of God, the preservation of man is evidence for the patience of God, and Christ is evidence for the forgiveness of God. It is when we are wrapped up in our own little peeves that we begin to displace His benevolence with malevolence.”

“Divide the constant tide and random noisiness of energetic flow, with conscious recurring moments of empty mind, solitude, gratitude and deep…slow…breathing. Of this, the natural law of self-preservation demands.”

“The first law of nature is self-preservation. Cut off that which may harm you. But if it is worth preserving, and is meaningful, nourish it and have no regrets. Ultimately, this is true living and love of self…from within.”

“What I believe to be true I must therefore preserve. What seems to me so obvious, even against me, I must support.”