make a list of 101 quotes that inspire me

Walt Whitman (1819–1892). Leaves of Grass. 1900.

PASSING stranger! you do not know how longingly I look upon you,
You must be he I was seeking, or she I was seeking, (it comes to me, as of a dream,)
I have somewhere surely lived a life of joy with you,
All is recall’d as we flit by each other, fluid, affectionate, chaste, matured,
You grew up with me, were a boy with me, or a girl with me,
I ate with you, and slept with you—your body has become not yours only, nor left my body mine only,
You give me the pleasure of your eyes, face, flesh, as we pass—you take of my beard, breast, hands, in return,
I am not to speak to you—I am to think of you when I sit alone, or wake at night alone,
I am to wait—I do not doubt I am to meet you again,
I am to see to it that I do not lose you.

I first heard this poem, or at least the last three lines on the Valentine’s episode of Bones. They were so beautiful I was forced to look them up and now I can keep them forever. They are the only words of love I can stomach. They are true and real and give me hope… sometimes.

Phenomenal Woman
by Maya Angelou

Pretty women wonder where my secret lies.
I’m not cute or built to suit a fashion model’s size
But when I start to tell them,
They think I’m telling lies.
I say,
It’s in the reach of my arms,
The span of my hips,
The stride of my step,
The curl of my lips.
I’m a woman
Phenomenally.
Phenomenal woman,
That’s me.

I walk into a room
Just as cool as you please,
And to a man,
The fellows stand or
Fall down on their knees.
Then they swarm around me,
A hive of honey bees.
I say,
It’s the fire in my eyes,
And the flash of my teeth,
The swing in my waist,
And the joy in my feet.
I’m a woman
Phenomenally.

Phenomenal woman,
That’s me.

Men themselves have wondered
What they see in me.
They try so much
But they can’t touch
My inner mystery.
When I try to show them,
They say they still can’t see.
I say,
It’s in the arch of my back,
The sun of my smile,
The ride of my breasts,
The grace of my style.
I’m a woman
Phenomenally.
Phenomenal woman,
That’s me.

Now you understand
Just why my head’s not bowed.
I don’t shout or jump about
Or have to talk real loud.
When you see me passing,
It ought to make you proud.
I say,
It’s in the click of my heels,
The bend of my hair,
the palm of my hand,
The need for my care.
’Cause I’m a woman
Phenomenally.
Phenomenal woman,
That’s me.

1. “It is better to ask for Forgiveness than Permission” from LJ Gibbs and Eragon

2. Joe: “It wasn’t personal, it’s just business”
Kathleen: “What does that mean it wasn’t personal? All that means is that it wasn’t personal to you. Whatever else anything is it ought to begin with being personal.” from You’ve got Mail

3. Dear Lord, Give me health and strength, we’ll steal the rest – The West Wing

4. Why is foreign aid important? It moves democracy forward – The West Wing

5. If you’ve got it flaunt it – The Producers

6. The trick for me being happy is not to be wanting things, but to be satisfied with what you have. So anything else that comes along at this point is just gravy – Jay Leno

7. You can’t stop being who you are because you’re afraid – SATC

8. If you’ve got it flaunt it – Mel Brooks, The Producers

9. It’s never too late to do the right thing – What Women Want

10. Isn’t it amazing that no matter what, criticism is the only thing you really remember

11. Why do we let the one thing we don’t have affect all the things you do have? – SATC

12. “Isn’t Love supposed to be blind?” “Heck no, it’s just a little out of focus!” Nessa in Vegas

13. “He knows the difference between loving the idea of someone and actually loving them” El to Neil on White Collar

14. “What we can’t do is live our lives afraid of the next Goodbye because chances are, they’re not going to stop. The trick is to recognise when a Goodbye is a good thing – a chance to start again” Betty Suarez

15. “Everything’s coming up roses” a commonly used phrase invented by Stephen Sondheim for the musical Gypsy sang by Ethel
Merman

16. “taking water from the same well doesn’t make all the wives’ gravy taste good” old Bophatswana saying courtesy of Mrs Tembe on Doctors.

17. “People at a junction in their lives should stop and look both ways.” Cherie – Doctors

“Don’t be afraid your life will end; be afraid that it will never begin, get out there and enjoy yourself!” – Lilia

"Being happy doesn't mean everything's perfect. It means you've decided to see beyond the imperfections." - Jens

“Never allow someone to be your priority while allowing yourself to be their option.” – Michelle

The more we define ourselves, the more we confine ourselves.”
-Me

“There are those whose destinies led them to stay home, and those whose destinies led elsewhere. The worst ones are the ones whose destinies led elsewhere, yet they never left home.”
-Me

“If life is a machine, hope is the raw material and memories are the product. The machine tends to be very inefficient.”
-Me

“I care less and less about what people think of me, and more and more about the people I think of.”

1. “Be the change you want to see in the World” – Mahatma Ghandi
2. “Twenty years from now you will be more disappointed by the things you didn’t do than by the ones you did. So throw off the bowlines. Sail away from the safe harbor. Catch the trade winds in your sails. Explore. Dream. Discover.” – Mark Twain
3. “Our greatest fear is not that we are inadequate, Our greatest fear is that we are powerful beyond measure” – Marianne Williamson.
4. Sometimes you have to stop worrying about how someone’s going to react and just say what’s on your mind.
5. I hear music in the heart of noise – George Gershwin about Rhapsody in Blue
6. “It’s only after you’ve lost everything, that you’re free do to anything” – Tyler Durden
7. “Addictions many times is a passion gone awry” – Rhonda Britten
8. “Don’t cry about money, it never cries for you. Money has no emotions, no tears, just reality.”
9. If you want to find something you have to stop looking – Zen poem
10. Always keep your heart open it’s the only way that love will find a way in.
11. Every story begins and ends at the crossing of two paths
12. Your food shall be your medicine and your medicine shall be your food. – Hippocrates (460-377 BC)
13. Always look forward, never turn back – Corpus Christie Church, PP
14. One thing we know is that people can make better decisions with more information – Sergey Brin, co-founder of Google
15 Happiness can’t be travelled to, owned, worn or consumed. It is the experience of living EVERY moment with LOVE, GRACE and GRATITUDE
16. All you’ll get from strangers is surface pleasantry or indifference. Only someone who loves you will criticize you. – Judith Crist, crack film critic
17. I had to fall down a bunch of times, but it was OK. Letdowns are what make a life, that’s why you appreciate the good things!” – Drew Barrymore
18. “Imperfection is beauty, madness is genius and it’s better to be absolutely ridiculous than absolutely boring.” — Marilyn Monroe
19. “Being in love is fabulous but you have to like someone to spend a lifetime with them” – Coleen Nolan’s dad
20. “Treat everyone with politeness, even those who are rude to you – not because they are nice, but because you are.”
21. “90% perfect and published always changes more lives than 100% perfect and stuck in your head.” Jon Acuff
22. “I fill myself with energy until I have to let it out” Albert Hammond, musician and writer of stacks of hit songs incl One Moment in Time for the LA Olympics sang by Whitney