How we cite our quotes: (Line)
Quote #4
[…] the stranger who has loved you
all your life, (9-10)
Even during the dark ages, when the chips were down, the past was not as bad as it might seem. The “stranger” here was you, and you actually did love you—even though the implication here is that you didn’t realize or embrace that fact in the past. This non-stop source of self-love, though, should be of comfort to you in the future. Good times are on their way.
Quote #5
Take down the love letters from the bookshelf,
The photographs, the desperate notes, (12-13)
You want to move on with your life? You want to clear those cloudy skies? Well, you’ve got some cleaning to do, bub. All those mementoes are tying you to the past, to a dark time that’s best forgotten. The only way to embrace the future is to wipe the slate (and those bookshelves) clean.
Quote #6
Sit. Feast on your life. (15)
“Be here now.” It may sound like a hippy-dippy bumper sticker (you can probably find one on the bumper of a Volkswagen van), but that is a crucial message of this poem. You must allow yourself to be in the moment in order to truly reflect and appreciate yourself, your world, and everything in it. Take a load off, kick up your heels, and dig in.