Don't Let Me Go

[Grace talking to Billy.] "It's like people who want to feel only happy but not sad," she said. "It never works. You either feel things or you don't. You don't get to pick and choose. At least, I don't think so.

The people with the least to give always give the most. Haven’t you noticed that?

You want to be OK right now, so you trade that for having a good life in the long run. It’s a bad trade, but people do it all the time. That’s all addiction really is. It’s trading away the future so you can feel OK right now.

It’s just words. How can words be dangerous?” “You have a lot to learn about the world, baby girl. Nothing is more dangerous than words.” “That’s stupid. What about a gun? A gun can kill you dead.” “Only your body,” Billy said. “It can’t kill your soul. Words can kill your soul.

Accepting things. That’s what the talk was about. About how insane it is to try to pretend something isn’t a certain way, or that you can make it another way, just because you don’t like it.

That’s all addiction really is. It’s trading away the future so you can feel OK right now.

See, this is why I was by myself all those years. Because as soon as you let people in, they start depending on you. And then, if you can’t be everything they think you should be, you’ve let them down. It’s easier not to have anybody around at all.

it gets to be an addiction. You want to be OK right now, so you trade that for having a good life in the long run. It’s a bad trade, but people do it all the time. That’s all addiction really is. It’s trading away the future so you can feel OK right now.

Hard work can sometimes substitute for natural ability, but natural ability almost never makes up for not being willing to do the work.

[Rayleen talking to Billy.] "Grace is thriving here, and I dare anybody to challenge that. Anybody who has a problem with that can come take it up with me." "Thank God," Billy said, "because I really hate it when people come take things up with ME.

Like I told you before, it gets to be an addiction. You want to be OK right now, so you trade that for having a good life in the long run. It’s a bad trade, but people do it all the time. That’s all addiction really is. It’s trading away the future so you can feel OK right now.

That’s stupid. What about a gun? A gun can kill you dead.” “Only your body,” Billy said. “It can’t kill your soul. Words can kill your soul.

It’s like people who want to feel only happy but not sad,” she said. “It never works. You either feel things or you don’t. You don’t get to pick and choose. At least, I don’t think so.

Hmm,” he said. “Like the world is big again. No. Not again. Like I only thought it had gotten small while I was inside, but now I see it was big the whole time, just waiting out there. Waiting for me to come back.

This was the other thing Grace had noticed about grown-ups. In addition to being afraid of each other, it was hard to wring any information out of them. At least, if it was information about them. If it was about what kids ought to do, then they were nothing but words.

Addict logic,” Yolanda said, not missing a beat. “Life viewed through resentment.

You have a lot to learn about the world, baby girl. Nothing is more dangerous than words.” “That’s stupid. What about a gun? A gun can kill you dead.” “Only your body,” Billy said. “It can’t kill your soul. Words can kill your soul.

Just because I don’t think normally doesn’t mean I don’t know normal thinking when I hear it.

Don’t waste any energy on anything but what’s in front of you.

Nothing is more dangerous than words. Words can kill your soul.

like a mask, and in his other hand he held an open can of

It’s just that this might be the last train to happy. And you want to make sure to get on it.” Felipe

Shades of me, he thought. Did other people react so violently to the overwhelm of their emotion? News to him. He’d lived his life quite sure he was the only one. Billy

It’s like people who want to feel only happy but not sad,” she said. “It never works. You either feel things or you don’t. You don’t get to pick and choose. At least, I don’t think so.” Billy

How can it be good to know nothing?” “It’s not. But if you know nothing, it’s good to know that you know nothing.” “Oh,” Grace said. “Yeah, I guess.” “Because as long as you think you know everything, nothing changes.

Accepting things. That’s what the talk was about. About how insane it is to try to pretend something isn’t a certain way, or that you can make it another way, just because you don’t like it. And how that seems to be the one thing that makes addicts use drugs, and pretty much ruins everybody’s lives. This thing about refusing to just accept the way things are when you can’t change them anyway.

But when I was inside, I was always OK. So I just started staying inside. Like I told you before, it gets to be an addiction.

Esta bien,” Clara called back. They sat in silence a while longer. “You seem pretty relaxed,” she said to Billy. “Pretty

You want to be OK right now, so you trade that for having a good life in the long run. It’s a bad trade, but people do it all the time. That’s all addiction really is. It’s trading away the future so you can feel OK right now. That’s what your mom is doing. And that’s what got me. There’s really quite a lot of it going around.” Billy