Best 20 quotes of Bette Greene on MyQuotes

And marking off time struck me as something like counting empty spaces—spaces you know can't ever be filled.

And taking care of somebody else made me feel good. Like discovering you're more than you thought you were. More even than you hoped to be.

A person's got to think, otherwise that person's no better than a trained seal balancing a ball on his nose. If only that seal could think, he'd know he was making a thousand children laugh.

Even if you forget everything else I want you to always remember that you are a person of value, and you have a friend who loved you enough to give you his most valued possession.

Experiencing life through a book can help you learn without all the pain of going through the experiences first hand.

Fun, like champagne bubbles, can't completely fill you up.

I believe that love is better than hate. And that there is more nobility in building a chicken coop than in destroying a cathedral.

I love Arkansas but I think Arkansas has its share of unlit minds.

It seems to me that a man who is incapable of humor is capable of cruelty.

It was like that. Sometimes I'd go for a period—days or weeks—without feeling the full sweep of my loss, and then as unexpected as a thunderclap, the realization would rip the protective coating from my senses. Maybe that's the way it is with trick knees and aging griefs. Totally pain free one moment and absorbingly painful the next.

I was hooked on writing. I mean, where else can you get paid for sticking your nose into somebody else's business?

Keep in mind that life produces no maestros, only students of varying shades of ineptitude.

Longevity can't be the only test of love.

Look inside yourself and you'll find a world of things (a world of your own experiences)worth writing about.

Maybe...in a way, this coffee reminds me of something. Maybe...maybe only a philosopher or a mad man would make this connection, but it's a little like life. I mean it's powerful going down and that doesn't even take into account the aftertaste, which really takes getting used to.

The world is not a rational place.

What do you know about sooner or later? Is a moment only a moment when you're in pain?

What is genius, anyway, if it isn't the ability to give an adequate response to a great challenge?

My father chose acquiescence and life rather than resistance and death. Not a very admirable choice, but a very human one.

The secret is in absolutely refusing to let the river beat you down. If I had to, I'd measure my progress in inches. One more inch I've swum—one less inch to swim. Once you know the secret, then nobody's river can bring you down.