Quotes from Elizabeth Gilbert

What Richard is talking about is instead admitting to the existence of negative thoughts, understanding where they came from and why they arrived, and then - with great forgiveness and fortitude - dismissing them.

The sweetness of doing nothing.

To be prosperous and happy in life, Henry, it is simple. Pick one woman, pick it well, and surrender.

the only thing you need to do for now is get some rest and take good care of yourself until you do know the answer

The appreciation of pleasure can be the anchor of humanity.

Equally disquieting are the times when we do make a choice, only to later feel as though we have murdered some other aspect of our being by settling on one single concrete decision.

A true soul mate is probably the most important person you'll ever meet, because they tear down your walls and smack you awake.

It ain't what they call you; it's what you answer to.

I am burdened with what the Buddhists call the monkey mind. The thoughts that swing from limb to limb, stopping only to scratch themselves, spit and howl. My mind swings wildly through time, touching on dozens of ideas a minute, unharnessed and undisciplined. You are, after all, what you think. Your emotions are the slaves to your thoughts, and you are the slave to your emotions.

The universe buries strange jewels deep within us all, and then stands back to see if we can find them. The hunt to discover those jewels––that's creative living.

To show a longing for anything that one cannot have, for instance, is not a clever position.

Before you realize this truth, say the Yogis, you will always be in despair, a notion nicely expressed in this exasperated line from the Greek stoic philosopher Epictetus: 'You bear God within you, poor wretch, and know it not.

What kind of dog is that? I would always give the same answer: She's a brown dog. Similarly, when the question is raised, What kind of God do you believe in? my answer is easy: I believe in a magnificent God.

It may be that same-sex couples will save the institution of marriage.

I still can't say whether I ever want children….I can only say how I feel now--grateful to be on my own. I also know that I won't go forth and have children just in case I might regret missing it later in life; I don't think this is a strong enough motivation to bring more babies onto the earth.

A lovely evening of new idioms and fresh mozzarella.

I had always been taught that the pursuit of happiness was my natural (even national) birthright. It is the emotional trademark of my culture to seek happiness. Not just any kind of happiness, either, but profound happiness, even soaring happiness. And what could possibly bring a person more soaring happiness than romantic love.

After a certain age, time just drizzles down upon your head like rain in the month of March: you're always surprised at how much of it can accumulate, and how fast.

I have never created anything in my life that did not make me feel, at some point or another, like I was the guy who just walked into a fancy ball wearing a homemade lobster costume.

Devotion is diligence without assurance. Faith is a way of saying Yes, I pre-accept the terms of the universe and I embrace in advance what I am presently incapable of understanding.

The best we can do then, in response to our incomprehensible and dangerous world, is to practice holding equilibrium internally - no matter what insanity is transpiring out there.

If you're going to live your life based on delusions (and you are, because we all do), then why not at least select a delusion that is helpful?

failure has a function. It asks you whether you really want to go on making things.

The essential ingredients for creativity remain exactly the same for everybody: courage, enchantment, permission, persistence, trust—and those elements are universally accessible. Which does not mean that creative living is always easy; it merely means that creative living is always possible.