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Judith Ortiz Cofer El Olivido
It is a dangerous thing
to forget the
climate of your birthplace
to choke out the voices of dead relatives
when in dreams they call you
by your secret
name.
It is dangerous
to spurn the clothes you were born to wear
for the sake of fashion; dangerous
to use weapons
and sharp instruments
you are not familiar with; dangerous
to disdain the plaster saints
before which your mother
kneels
praying with embarrassing fervor
that you survive in the place you have chosen to
live:
a bare, cold room
with no pictures on the walls,
a forgetting place where she fears you will die
of loneliness and exposure.
Jesus,
Maria y Jose, she says,
El Olvido is a dangerous thing.

Anne Sexton Riding the Elevator Into the Sky
As the fireman said:
Don't
book a room over the fifth floor
in any hotel in New York.
They have ladders that will reach further
but no one
will climb them.
As the New York Times said:
The elevator always seeks out
the floor of the fire
and automatically
opens
and won't shut.
These are the warnings
that you must forget
if you're climbing out of yourself.
If
you're going to smash into the sky.
Many times I've gone past
the fifth floor,
cranking toward,
but only once
have I gone
all the way up.
Sixtieth floor: small plants and swans bending
into their grave.
Floor two hundred:
mountains
with the patience of a cat,
silence wearing its sneakers.
Floor five hundred:
messages and letters centuries old,
birds to drink,
a kitchen of clouds.
Floor six thousand:
the stars,
skeletons on fire,
their arms
singing.
And a key,
a very large key,
that opens something–
some useful door–
somewhere–
up there.
Silvia Plath Mirror
I am silver and exact. I have no preconceptions.
What ever you see I swallow immediately
Just as it is, unmisted by love or dislike .
I am not cruel, only truthful---
The eye of a little god, four-cornered.
Most of the time I meditate on the opposite wall.
It is pink, with speckles.
I have looked at it so long
I think it is a part of my heart. But it flickers.
Faces and darkness separate us over
and over.
Now I am a lake. A woman bends over me,
Searching my reaches for what she really is.
Then
she turns to those liars, the candles or the moon.
I see her back, and reflect it faithfully.
She rewards me with
tears and an agitation of hands.
I am important to her. She comes and goes.
Each morning it is her face that replaces
the darkness.
In me she has drowned a young girl, and in me an old woman
Rises toward her day after day, like a terrible
fish.
love is when you don't want to go to sleep cause reality is better than a dream
whenever my mind wanders, it always finds its way to you
I don't mind if he catches me stairing, because then I know he was stairing back
She asked God for true love, She learned to love herself
He handed her a bouquet of roses: eleven real and one fake. He said to her, "I'll love you till the
last one dies!"
Love is when you miss him before he leaves, when you could listen to him talk all night, and never
get tired of hearing his voice, when the sound of his name sends chills down your spine and you see his smile the second you
close your eyes
Weeping willow with your tears running down
why do you always weep and frown?
Is it because he left you one day?
Is
it because he could not stay?
He found shelter in your shade
You thought his laughter would never fade.
On your branches,
he would swing
Do you long for the happiness that day would bring?
Weeping willow, stop your tears
for there is something
to calm your fears;
If you think death has ripped you forever apart
I know he'll always be in your heart.
--Vada, My Girl
*~Just Friends~*
I stare out of my window
and think of you
Just one more glimplse,
or
maybe two,
But it doesn't matter
because you aren't there.
It makes me wonder,
Will you ever be there again?
It seems like the pain will never end
It feels as if my heart will never mend.
You didn't just say goodbye.
But
what you said really made me cry
It can't be over,
or can it?
It must have taken alot of wit.
I meanto just
come out like that.
Because I hate it when I feel like this.
When I laughed
you laughed at me
When I cried
you wiped my tears
When I was feeling all alone
you stayed with me
So why is it now,
that all we can be
is just friends?
Our eyes meet from across the room, I stare, and it's kind of funny how we both turn away hoping the
other didn't see... the way you look at me makes me believe that somewhere, deep inside your heart i'm still welcome, still
wanted and needed to fill that place in your life, and even though you may think that she can do it, she can't...only I am
meant to be in that place...so have her pack her bags, take all her stuff and get lost.
after a while you learn the differences between holding a hand and falling in love...you begin to learn
that kisses don't always mean something and promises can be broken just as quickly as they are made and...sometimes...goodbyes
really are forever
there's someone, somewhere, who thinks of your smile, who finds in your presance, that life is worthwhile,
so when you're alone remember its true, someonw, somewhere, is thinking of you.
never kiss a guy whose eyes are green,
he'll kiss you once and make you want to scream!
Never kiss a guy whose eyes are brown
He'll kiss you once and turn you around!
Never kiss a guy whose eyes are black,
He'll kiss you once and turn his back!
But kiss a guy whose eyes are
blue,
he'll kiss you once and ask for two!
Summer romances begin for all kinds of reasons but when all is said and done, they have one thing in
common. They're shooting stars, a sectacular moment of light in the heavens, fleeting glimpse of eternity, and in a flash
they're gone
--The Notebook
Your strong arms pull me closer
My butterflies collide
My heart is fully exposed
There
is no where for it to hide
I see the brilliance of your eyes
Time seems not to flee
Swirled with shades of Neptune
The god of all the sea
True love is not wasted
True love is never fake
True love can last forever
In the heart
of those who wait
"The world of first dates and mixed tapes, family dramas and new frineds. The world of sex, drugs,
and The Rocky Horror Picture Show, when all one requires is that perfect song on that perfect drive to feel infinate."
--The Perks of Being a Wallflower
I've said what I needed to say
Now I've done what I needed to do
Now whatever happens to us
I'm gonna leave that up to you
If you love somewone then just say it,
right then, right there, out loud,
or else the moment
just passes you by...
Micheal~My Best Friend's Wedding
You're my flower in a concrete world
No guy is worth you tears but the one who is won't make you cry
~If you love someone go for them~
He's on the dance floor yellin': "Free Bird," Singin' off pitch but he knows every word.
--Neal McCoy
Don't go looking for love it will come to you
Don't settle for the one you can life with...
...wait for the one you can't live without
Don't be afraid to love,
Not everyone will hurt you
Life is too short,
so kiss slowly,
laugh insanely,
love truely,
and forgive quickly
~!Sometimes the person you fall for isn't ready to catch you...so hold on until they are ready to catch
you...cuz love takes time!~
I ran up the door,
closed the stairs,
said my pajamas,
put on my prayers,
turned off
the bed,
and hopped into the light,
all because you kissed me good night
We'll both be together because we're both under the moon
Sometimes I look at the moon thinking of you...then I wonder if you are looking at it thinking of me
When he smiles at me I can't help but smile back
Never say you hate him if you can't let go of him
black roses tend to fall when you want to end it all
red roses tend to bleed when the one you love is in need
blue roses tend to blow when your heart stops to grow
shite roses tend to die when you want to start to cry
so all the roses will appear when happiness is nowhere near
but the green rose which is not real
will really show they way you feel
"That Girl"
That girl sits and wonders,
Day to day.
What is this guy going to say.
Does he love her?
Does he care?
Does he even want to have her there?
Days she is lonely,
Days she is sad.
Her heart feels like it's being tugged,
Left to right.
It's as if it's in a fight.
If he loves her,
He'll let her know.
If not, she'll let him go.
We'll see you at the show If you don't come we'll never know You stand off in the back You still stand
out while wearing black
--Nickleback
I wanna be known as the girl who always smiles, Even when she's down, And the one who can always brighten
your day... Even if she can't brighten her own.
I want the fairy tale
--Pretty Woman
The hardest battle you're ever gonna fight is the battle to just be you
I always knew looking back on the tears would make me laugh, but i never knew looking back on the laughs
would make me cry.
~When you feel like giving up, remember why you held on so long in the first place~
Attitude is knowing you have one... ...Liking it, And not caring what anybody thinks!
Bombing for peace, Is like having sex for virginity, It's worthless!!!
I wonder where we lost it. Maybe I'll check the cupboeards; it outght to be there. It must be behind
those spiders. I'll stick my hand in it's okay. The bites only hurt a little, really. Oh. There's only cobwebs left. It's
alright. The spiders must have hidden it. I guess they didn't want me to find it. It's fine. Maybe I'll look for it someother
time. Really, the bites only hurt a little.
People are always saying to smile like smiling is going to make all the pain go away. Well I've tried
that. I've tried covering up the pain with fakeness. I've learned when it hurts this much inside your heart it always has
a way of showing it no matter how many masks you wear.
"Take my picture, tonight I feel beautiful"
--Lisa in Wickerpark
Iam nothing I am no one I'm like a wisper in the breeze I am different I am free I have fun I'm nice to all I don't criticize
you I'm not like you Thank God if I were like you I would be like everyone else and where's the fun in that Where's the fun
in having no variety Where's the fun in living a total lie
Let the pain flow through your heart... And let the truth be told... You can't change the past, You
can't change the future. So let the pain and memories be made unforgetable -
-Alexander who lost his mother
life is like a rose, sometimes pretty, sometimes hard, sometimes hurtful, like the thorns. the petals
allow the beauty to be seen the thorns protect everything our defense is our bitterness the pain inflicted by our thorns.
we are like the stems and sometimes unbreakable uncuttable but as a whole we are the most sought after flower.
dance girl dance, as if your life depended on it. sing girl sing, let the universe know your song.
paint girl paint, give the world back it's color. write girl write, bring imagination back to the people. smile girl smile,
make those around you happy. cry girl cry, shed your pain and let it be free. laugh girl laugh, let those around you know
you joy. walk girl walk, experience the life thats around you. jump girl jump, bring back life to the earth. spin girl spin,
make the world go round. live girl live, cause this may be the only chance you get.
Never have I fallen Your lips speak soft sweetness Your touch a cool caress I am lost in your magic
My heart beats within your chest I think of you each morning And dream of you each night I think of your arms being around
me And cannot express my delight Never have I fallen But I am quickly on my way You hold a heart in your hands that has never
been given away
In summer, the song sings itself.
--William Carlos Williams
Someday somebody's going to ask you a question that you should say yes to.
--Old 97's
There were lots of showy, strange pieces in the gallery when you first walked in, but they didn't mean
much to her. Then, just as you turned the corner to the office, there was a quiet, simply framed drawing on the wall. It was
a figure drawing of a young woman holding her hair back with one hand. It was quiet, but so beautiful it made her thrroat
ache. It gave her chills from her scalp down to the bals of her feet. The drawing not only exibited technical mastery and
intrivate detail, but it contained so much grace, so much feeling, it made her know what she wanted to achieve in her life.
Areodynamically, the bumblebee shouldn't be able to fly, but the bumblebee doesn't know it so it goes
on flying anyway.
--Mary Kay Ash
Hit the point once. Then come back and hit it again. Then hit it a third time- a tremendous wack.
--Winston Churchill
God is subtle. But not malicious. -
-Albert Einstein
It's the same old story. Boy finds girl, boy loses girl, girl finds boy,
boy forgets girl, boy remembers girl, girl dies in tragic blimp accident over the Orange Bowl on New Years Day.
--The Naked Gun
Don't ask me any questions now. I'm grumpy and I"ll probably make fun of you.
--Effie Kaligaris
To the man who only has a hammer in the toolkit, every problem looks like a nail
--Abraham Maslow
Growing up is for crap but it's better than the alternative.
"No. That's okay." He was looking down now. His neck arched so gracefully and sadly. The tilt of his
neck spoke so eloquently that her fingers itched to start another drawing. It was a miracle how when you looked hard enough,
when you really sought out information, there was so much feeling, such a dazzling array of things that your words, at least
her words, could never say. There were thousands of images and memories and ideas, if you just let them come. There was the
whole history of human experience somewhere contained in each of the bits, the most universal in the most specific, if you
could only see it. It was like poetry. Well she had never really found poetry in poetry, to be truthful. But she imagined
this was what poetry might be like for someone who understood it and loved it. Either it was like poetry or it was like getting
really, really stoned.
How sad it was, she thought, that you acted awful when you were desperately sad and hurt and wanting
to be loved. How tragic then, the way everyone avoided you and tiptoed around you when you really needed them. She knew this
vicious predicament as well as anyone in the world. How bitter it felt when you acted so badly to everyone and ended up hating
yourself the most.
She was getting a fever, she concluded. She meant to do something about this. Maybe she could steal
a couple of advil from Katie. She kept imagining herself doing this, without actually doing it. She passed, gradually, into
a state between awake and asleep. She imagained getting another blanket. She imagained drinking a glass of water. She could
not figure out weather she was doing it or not. She puzzled and tortured her brain trying to figure out what was real and
what wasn't real.
After these hours she felt as though she knew the tree in a new way and the tree knew her. It wasn't
an unfriendly tree, but it did pose a challenge to her.
Of course she found it in the last place she looked. If she hadn't found it she'd still be looking.
--Susannah Brown
To love another peson is To see the face of God.
--Victor Hugo
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