“Life's a forge! Yes, and hammer and anvil, too! You'll be roasted, smelted, and pounded, and you'll scarce know what's happening to you. But stand boldly to it! Metal's worthless till it's shaped and tempered! More labor than luck. Face the pounding, don't fear the proving; and you'll stand well against any hammer and anvil.”
― Lloyd Alexander, quote from Taran Wanderer
“Llonio said life was a net for luck; to Hevydd the Smith life was a forge; and to Dwyvach the Weaver-Woman a loom. They spoke truly, for it is all of these. But you,' Taran said, his eyes meeting the potter's, 'you have shown me life is one thing more. It is clay to be shaped, as raw clay on a potter's wheel.”
― Lloyd Alexander, quote from Taran Wanderer
“Trust your luck, Taran Wanderer. But don't forget to put out your nets!”
― Lloyd Alexander, quote from Taran Wanderer
“If I fret over tomorrow, I'll have little joy today.”
― Lloyd Alexander, quote from Taran Wanderer
“Craftsmanship isn't like water in an earthen pot, to be taken out by the dipperful until it's empty. No, the more drawn out the more remains.”
― Lloyd Alexander, quote from Taran Wanderer
“I saw myself.... In the time I watched, I saw strength—and frailty. Pride and vanity, courage and fear. Of wisdom, a little. Of folly, much. Of intentions, many good ones; but many more left undone. In this, alas, I saw myself a man like any other.
But this, too, I saw.... Alike as men may seem, each is different as flakes of snow, no two the same. You told me you had no need to seek the Mirror, knowing you were Annlaw Clay-Shaper. Now I know who I am: myself and none other. I am Taran.”
― Lloyd Alexander, quote from Taran Wanderer
“True allegiance is only given willingly.”
― Lloyd Alexander, quote from Taran Wanderer
“If you want truth, you should begin by giving it.”
― Lloyd Alexander, quote from Taran Wanderer
“For Wayfarers still journeying, for Wanderers at rest.”
― Lloyd Alexander, quote from Taran Wanderer
“If life is a loom, the pattern you weave is not so easily unraveled.”
― Lloyd Alexander, quote from Taran Wanderer
“Stale water is a poor drink,' said Annlaw. 'Stale skill is worse. And the man who walks in his own footsteps only ends where he began.”
― Lloyd Alexander, quote from Taran Wanderer
“Count the deed, not the thought.”
― Lloyd Alexander, quote from Taran Wanderer
“My luck's no greater than yours or any man's. You need only sharpen your eyes to see your luck when it comes, and sharpen your wits to use what falls into your hands.”
― Lloyd Alexander, quote from Taran Wanderer
“Is a man truly what he see himself to be?'
'Only if what he sees is true.”
― Lloyd Alexander, quote from Taran Wanderer
“I ask no comfort," Taran replied, "but the truth, be it harsh or happy."
"Ah, my sweet robin," said Orddu, "for the finding of that, nothing is harder. There are those who have spent lifetimes at it, and many in worse plight than yours.”
― Lloyd Alexander, quote from Taran Wanderer
“Two things never mix: one is enchantments and the other is meddling with them.”
― Lloyd Alexander, quote from Taran Wanderer
“There are heroes and heroes. I don't deny he's acted bravely on occasion. He's fought beside Lord Gwydion and been proud of himself as a chick wearing eagle's feathers. But that's only one kind of bravery. Has the darling robin ever scratched for his own worms? That's bravery of another sort. And between the two, dear Orwen, he might find the latter shows the greater courage.”
― Lloyd Alexander, quote from Taran Wanderer
“I believe you know my quest from its beginning to its end, and that I seed to learn my parentage.
"Parentage?" said Orddu. "Nothing easier. Choose any parents you please. Since none of you has ever known each other, what difference can it possibly make - to them or to you? Believe what you like. You'll be surprised how comforting it is.”
― Lloyd Alexander, quote from Taran Wanderer
“Had I done it sooner, perhaps he might have lived. He was a man of courage and good heart, a proud man. Now he is dead. I saved the signal to use in a worthy cause, and when I found one it was wasted.”
“Wasted?” answered Fflewddur. “I think not. Since you did your best and didn’t begrudge using it, I shouldn’t call it wasted at all.”
― Lloyd Alexander, quote from Taran Wanderer
Lloyd Alexander
Born place: in Philadelphia, Pennsylvania, The United States
Born date January 30, 1924
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“Running to him was real; the way he did it the realest thing he knew. It was all joy and woe, hard as diamond; it made him weary beyond comprehension. But it also made him free.”
― quote from Once a Runner
“Think of it as a life experience," I mumbled. "Isn't your dad always saying we need more of that?"
"I don't think prancing around PJ Jamieson's pool in our underwear is exactly what he had in mind.”
― Jody Gehrman, quote from Confessions of a Triple Shot Betty
“— What were you thinking about, child?
— I was thinking of heaven.
— It’s unnecessary for you to think of heaven: there’s already enough to consider about earth. Are you tired of living, you who have barely been born?
— No, but everyone prefers heaven to earth.
— Well, not I. For since heaven, as well as earth, has been made by God, you may count on encountering up there the very same evils as here below. After your death, you will not be rewarded according to your deserts, for if injustices are done you on this earth (as you will find out later by experience) there is no reason why, in the next life, you will not be further wronged. The best thing for you to do is not think of God, and since it is refused you, to make your own justice.”
― Comte de Lautréamont, quote from Maldoror and the Complete Works
“Jessilyn, ain't no man can't get someplace he never thought he'd get to. You let enough bad thoughts into your head, you can end up doin' all sorts of things you never thought possible. Otis let evil into his mind and it took over his heart. We best be on our guard and keep our minds on what's right and true so we don't become things we'll regret. His words scared me. I wanted to always be able to trust people, to know that good people stayed good people, but I was realizing all too quickly that the human heart is fragile and needs constant attention. I'd seen enough bleakness in my own heart to know my daddy was speaking the truth. That's why we all need to know Jesus in our hearts, Daddy said. Ain't no one else who can keep watch over our hearts like He can. Ain't no one else who can take the bad and replace it with good.”
― Jennifer Erin Valent, quote from Fireflies in December
“One hundred percent of royalties from Safely Home go to help persecuted Christians and to spread the gospel in their countries.”
― Randy Alcorn, quote from Safely Home
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Great House
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