Quotes from beth hoffman

Because I just do. This isn't something I think in my brain—it's something I feel in my heart, and there's a mighty big difference between the two. It's our hearts that tell us the truth of things, honey, and my heart has never betrayed me. Not ever.

I know you're scared, but you gotta grab hold of yourself. Every time you give in to your fears, you're lettin' that man win. and every time you do that, he gets stronger while you get weaker. Givin' in to your fears will rob you blind. You'll end up a prisoner to that man for the rest of your life.

Sapphire knew full well what Miz Obee was doing, but she always looked at her friend with tenderness in her eyes and pretended not to notice. As I watched this silent exchange between Sapphire and Miz Obee, it occurred to me that that's what friends should do: cherish the good and pretend not to notice the harmless rest.

guess some folks is willin' to pay anything for hope.

Her pace quickened when a small patch of sunflowers came into view. Dozens of tall stalks topped with heavy golden flower heads swayed in the hot breeze. From a distance they looked like a group of ladies with their heads hung low, as if embarrassed that they'd arrived at a party wearing identical hats.

You can't run around town tryin' to get even with every person who does you wrong. Ain't enough hours in the day to do that. Besides, two wrongs don't make a right.

Cecelia Rose, she said, reaching for my hand, "far too many people die with a heart that's gone flat with indifference, and it surely must be a terrible way to go. Life will offer us amazing opportunities, but we've got to be wide-awake to recognize them.

Mrs. Odell once told me that forgiveness had a whole lot more to do with the person doing the forgiving than it did with the person in need of forgiveness. She said holding on to hurt and anger made about as much sense as hitting your head with a hammer and expecting the other person to get a headache. But too many years of resentment were swollen inside me, and I had no forgiveness to offer my dad.

Don't go wastin' all them bright tomorrows you ain't even seen by hangin' on to what happened yesterday. Let go, child. Just breathe out and let go.

That's life out there. See how it's movin'? Even the leaves on the trees is movin'. Life don't wait for nobody, and even as special as you are, it ain't gonna wait for you, neither. So it's time to make up your mind that you're gonna join it.

If an older man ever sweeps you off your feet, just get up and run away as fast as you can." I

In some ways my life in Willoughby had begun to fade, much the same way a nightmare loses its grip when you find the courage to reach out in the darkness and turn on the light.

C'mon, honey, don't be mad at me. I don't mean to lie, I just remember big." Buck Preston to CeeCee's neighbor, Miz Goodpepper, in Saving CeeCee Honeycutt

Sometimes when we're holding pain and it gets to be too heavy or goes too deep, we have to give in to it, let it knock us over and pull us all the way down. Once we hit bottom, we rest in a quiet place for a while. Then, when the pain eases and we're ready to face the world again, we come right back up.

We're not supposed to outlive our children. It goes against nature's plan of things.

far too many people die with a heart that's gone flat with indifference, and it surely must be a terrible way to go. Life will offer us amazing opportunities, but we've got to be wide-awake to recognize them.

Two of the upstairs windows were boarded up, as if the house had closed its eyes in shame and whispered, Look what's become of me. As I stood surveying the property and wondering how it had come to such ruin, I realized that unless I pulled myself together and found a way to ground myself into my life, I could end up just as sad and empty as that old house.

Life will offer us amazing opportunities, but we've got to be wide-awake to recognize them.

While Mrs. Odell, Oletta, and Aunt Tootie talked about peach pies, what to add to the grocery list, and how quickly the summer was coming to end, I sat quietly and listened as their chatter lifted into the air, gilding all four corners of the kitchen. And as the sweet aroma of the fresh peaches mingled with the sound of their voices, I folded the memory into myself, feeling a peace I'd never before known. When

Love travels long miles.

I made a mental note that if I ever needed help from a man I would make him a pie.

When shadows take flight and the moon turns away from the stars, the raven delivers divine law

But Momma, winning that pageant wasn't your life -- it was only a day in your life -- that's all. Mrs. Odell says life is what we make it. Maybe you'd be happier if you adjusted your thinking a bit.

I'm fascinated with antiques," Miz Goodpepper said, bathing in a pool of soft light from the window. "I find there's a sweet sorrow in object that have slipped away from their original owners.