quoteworthy

I finally got around to reading No One Belongs Here More Than You by Miranda July.  She's known for her films, mostly, but who else is original enough in fiction to set a swimming lesson in a kitchen? 

Some favorite passages:

“It is terrible to have to ask for anything ever. We wish we were something that needed nothing, like paint. But even paint needs repainting.” 

“We don't really believe in mowing the lawn; we do it only to avoid unnecessary engagement with the neighbors.”

“Look at the sky: that is for you. Look at each person's face as you pass on the street: those faces are for you. And the street itself, and the ground under the street, and the ball of fire underneath the ground: all these things are for you. There are as much for you as they are for other people. Remember this when you wake up in the morning and think you have nothing.” 

“But, like ivy, we grow where there is room for us.” 

"That day I carried the dream around like a full glass of water, moving gracefully so I would not lose any of it."


And, one that's not from the collection, but about her writing:

“The idea that you might end up in a job that doesn’t allow you to be who you are, over the course of a lifetime, is still one of the most chilling nightmares to me. It’s a good metaphor for fears I have about losing my soul in some accidental, mundane way. So, to me, these jobs that my characters have are very loaded. They immediately suggest a complex character to me, a woman who is, say, a secretary, but also a vigilante on behalf of her own soul."

Yes, m'am.