Quotes from Lisa See

My love for him had never gone away but only changed, growing deeper like wine fermenting or pickles curing. It bore into me with the pervasiveness of water working its way to the center of a mountain.

You are not being punished for your anger. You're being punished by your anger.

Parents exist in children," Grandmother said to bolster my confidence. "Your mother will always exist in you. She will give you strength wherever you go.

When the sun is shining, think of the time it won't be, because even when you're sitting in your house with the doors shut, misfortune can fall from above.

Parents die, daughters grow up and marry out, but sisters are for life.

I've never thought much about whether I was happy or if I had fun as a child. I was a so-so girl who lived with a so-so family in a so-so village. I didn't know that there might be another way to live, and I didn't worry about it either.

The problem with living so long is that you see too many people pass before you.

All these types of love come out of duty, respect, and gratitude. Most of them, as the women in my county know, are sources of sadness, rupture, and brutality.

I have a whole life to tell; I have nothing left to lose and few to offend.

Snow Flower was my old same for life. I had a greater and deeper love for her than I could ever feel for a person who was my husband.

Who can name a death that was not tragic?" the speaker asks. "Is there a way for us to find meaning in the losses we've suffered? Who can say that one soul has a heavier grievance than another? We were all victims. We need to forgive each other." Remember? Yes. Forgive? No.

Maybe our lives are like gigantic jigsaw puzzles. You find the right piece and suddenly the whole picture has meaning.

It's said that great sorrow is no more than a reflection of one's capacity for great joy.

You're leaving, she said, rising to her feet. I knew it was coming. How? I'm your mother. You're the breath of my lungs and the beat of my heart. I know you very well.

Poetry is on earth to make you serene, not corrupt your mind, thoughts,or emotions

A brave heart? It feels like a swollen and aching thing in my chest.

Our words had to be circumspect. We could not write anything too negative about our circumstances. This was tricky, since the very form of a married woman's letter needed to include the usual complaints -- that we were pathetic, powerless, worked to the bone, homesick, and sad. We were supposed to speak directly about our feelings without appearing ungrateful, no-account, or unfilial.

the human body is a miniature version of the universe - the eyes and ears are the sun and moon, breath is air, blood is rain.

A weak man always seeks to hurt those lower than he

People say you need to be strong, smart, and lucky to survive hard times, war, a natural disaster, or physical torture. But I say emotional abuse—anxiety, fear, guilt, and degradation—is far worse and much harder to survive.

Anyone who tells you that the Yao people never care for their daughters is lying. We may be worthless. We may be raised for another family. But often we are loved and cherished, despite our natal families' best efforts not to have feelings for us.

I came here to be happy, and I'm going to be happy. If I smile, then maybe I can convince my body just how happy I am.

Let those who believe, believe. Let those who doubt, doubt.

The three most important powers are Heaven, Earth and Man. The three luminaries are the Sun, the Moon and the Stars. Opportunities given by Heaven are not equal to the advantages afforded by Earth, while the advantages of Earth do not match the blessings that come from harmony among men