Quotes About Emotions

There is always another heart within the heart, for / what we own is never what we have, what we love / is never what we own — Richard Jackson, from "Francis' Prayer," Broken Horizons (Press 53, 2018)

How seldom we can see our way to say what we love. — Richard Jackson, from "Elegy Along a Line of Sight," The Heart as Framed: New and Select Poems (Press 53, 2022)

Of course, there was a lot of anger and denial and even attempts to forget about being diabetic. Maybe I could forget about it for a while, but it never forgot about me.

If fucking up is power, I should be the Hulk by now.

The clerk is looking at me. His expression hasn't changed. What I want to do is punch a hole in the front of the desk, reach through, grab his balls, and make him sing The Mickey Mouse Club song. But these days, I'm working on the theory that killing everyone I don't like might be counterproductive. I'm learning to use my indoor voice like a big boy, so I smile back at the clerk.

Sometimes just seeing a woman smile is like a knife in the heart. It hurts and it rattles your whole system, but against all your instincts you swallow the pain and keep looking. After a while you realize it doesn't hurt as much as you thought it would.

It's more like how some people can't help but bring out the not necessarily righteous parts of your personality. Like how you meet someone and instantly know they're a full-time professional victim, and no matter how hard you try, something takes over and you can't help needling them.

When it's true love you know why you're getting stabbed.

Hell, boy. At some point, all fathers want to kill their sons. Just like all sons think about killing their old man. They're too much alike or they're not enough alike. It doesn't matter. What's beautiful is that they don't do it.

I want to say that I'm not doing this because you tried to kill me. I want to be bigger and better than that. But I'm not. I'm doing this because you tried to kill me.

Your image of yourself is one of a beast. A benevolent one, but a beast nonetheless. As much as this might pain you, it is also easy and familiar. It allows you to do away with deeper emotions.

There's the other secret of love. Our hearts don't age at the same rate as the rest of our bodies. You can be old on the inside long before you're old outside.

You're morbid tonight," said Largo. "I'm morbid every night. I just don't always get the chance to share it with others.

Ray looks over to see what Carlos is talking about. He has good control of his face. He's done this before. Ray never looks shocked, but the momentary spike in his heartbeat and his pupils dilating tell me all I need to know.

You really are lousy with people being nice to you." "It's easier getting punched.

I hate that there are nervous butterflies in my stomach, but there's no denying it.

The waiter brings the lamb chops. I'm still angry, but I take a bite of one. And it's like someone split my head open and filled it full of heavenly choirs and motel sex with Candy.

I'm fine. Really," I lie.

I taste my espresso. It's good. Dammit. How am I supposed to hate people if they make good coffee?

Instead they're crying like a school bus full of little French girls whose ice cream all melted.

This fire is a big deal. A huge deal. A giant, flaming, goddamn, piece-of-shit, agonizing, I-want-to-rip-my-own-head-off deal.

I only cut off my enemies' heads. I break my friends' hearts.

I hope watching the Bradys depresses them as much as being trapped here in Creation's shit pipe depresses me.

Memories are bullets. Some whiz by and only spook you. Others tear you open and leave you in pieces.