Memorable Quotes

[r2dh2]

Recently I’ve realized that some quotes speak to me. They might motivational, funny, anecdotical, realistic, prophetic, witty, nihilistic, pessimistic, etc. Are there any quotes that speak to you? They can come from the Buffyverse, literature, life, artists, politicians, justice-warriors, singers etc.

Please share a maximum of 4 quotes that you love and try to explain what do these quotes represent in your life. Even if it just a chuckle. Limiting this thread to 4 quotes has the goal of giving the same opportunity to everyone interested. But you certainly can also add other than 4 (or fewer) in a subsequence post. I think that this is a fun way for getting to know us and understand our similarities and differences. This can explain to an extent our diverging views when discussing BtVS.

Please make sure that AT LEAST one quote is from the Buffyverse.

Mire are:

1. “Never go for the kill when you can go for the pain.” D’Hoffryn (BtVS)

Everything about this phrase is perfect, powerful and poetic in a sadistic kind of way. It doesn’t represent anything specific about my life, but it screams to me: “If your job is to inflict vengeance and pain, DO your best 😉.”

2. “Success is not final, failure is not fatal: it is the courage to continue that counts.”Churchill.

What can say, Churchill was one of the mosts successful presidents, a brilliant strategist, a cultivated individual and a superb leader. This incredibly accomplished man also took his time, from from his busy agenda (WWII, *cough*cough*), to impart us wisdom (and comedy in case you’re interested in knowing more about him). This one hits close to home, I’ve been having troubles in my professional life and most of the time, I want to give up. But I can’t, I want to keep fighting. However even if I go in another direction, it is not failure but re-direction.

3. “Our destiny is frequently met in the very paths we take to avoid it.” Jean de La Fontaine.

We take detours, we avoid certain roads for any number of reasons and we move away (or cut ourselves of) from certain circumstances but, while I don’t believe in destiny itself, I’ve come to believe that certain paths are better suited for us and we’ll inevitably find them “on one of the roads we took to avoid them.”

4. “Lord, we know what we are, but not what we may be.” Shakespeare

Another powerful, poetic and perfect quote. We *are* here and now, but we don’t know what tomorrow will bring and how it will affect us. It could be our *destiny* catching up. Or it could be our foreseen *failure* showing us that this is not the appropriate way to go. Or it could be a reminder that we have to try our *best*, no matter the task at hand. But ultimately, I read it as acknowledging that destiny is not "fixed" and because of that, we'll never know what tomorrow brings. It might be terrifying to live in constant fear of not knowing. But it's liberating as hell: make the best of "the now" because tomorrow things might change. I read it as a sort of "carpe diem."

 

[November]

"If nothing we do matters, then all that matter is what we do"
I assume we are all familiar with this one from Angel. I basically live by this - my life is lived deliberately (as possible). Especially now as I am free from the suppression of the psychiatric/medical system.

"I don't care what you believe, just believe in it"
Shepherd Book - Serenity. Another that I live by. Faith is the driving force behind my will to live. I often get bogged down with what society expects - I find my place again when I remember these quotes.

 

[AnthonyCordova]

I'm not going to do 4 but, since you offered Shakespeare, I thought I would share my favorite Shakespearean sonnet (this is sonnet 94):

They that have power to hurt and will do none,
That do not do the thing they most do show,
Who, moving others, are themselves as stone,
Unmoved, cold, and to temptation slow:
They rightly do inherit heaven's graces
And husband nature's riches from expense;
They are the lords and owners of their faces,
Others but stewards of their excellence.
The summer's flower is to the summer sweet
Though to itself it only live and die,
But if that flower with base infection meet,
The basest weed outbraves his dignity:
For sweetest things turn sourest by their deeds;
Lilies that fester smell far worse than weeds.

I don't think the sonnet requires an explanation. It plainly speaks for itself, and in a beautiful way that can't be improved upon. I especially like its ending. I think you'll find there is actually quite a lot to think about in those final 4 lines when you scrutinize them.

 

[Leo]

“Where do we go from here?” OMWF
Life has many challenges and sometimes you don’t know how to move on or where to go.

“The hardest thing in this world is to live in it. Be brave. Live. For me.” The Gift
Related to the quote above, life has ups and downs and at times it feels like a blessing and a curse.

“If everything seems under control, you're not going fast enough” Mario Andretti
If you really want to live, you need to step out of your comfort zone.

 

[Name the Stars]

1. "Be the Change you Wish to See in the World"- Mahatma Gandhi
This quote has always spoken to me, as it talks about how you can't just wait around, and hope for the world to change, you have to do something! Nothing will happen if everyone just waits for someone else to chose to do something.
2. "Power. I have it, they don't. This bothers them"- Buffy Summers
I LOVE this quote. It is empowering, and it also addresses jealousy often aimed at powerful women. It's a simple quote, but it's about not being ashamed of your strengths. You have to be proud of the power you have, and maybe people will hate you for it, but you have to be yourself.
3. Are you taking me off the case? Please don't take me off the case! Because if you take me off the case, that means I'm not working, and if I'm working, it means I have to think thoughts!- Crazy Ex Girlfriend
I love this quote! It's very relatable for me, as a workaholic. People like me like to try to take their minds off of life's problems by drowning themselves in work. But you can't do that, and it isn't healthy. As the character Rebecca learns, you have to learn to feel things.

 

[TriBel]

“I think where I am not, therefore I am where I do not think. I am not whenever I am the plaything of my thought; I think of what I am where I do not think to think.” Jacques Lacan.
Lacan's response to Descartes' Cogito (I think). If I said what I thought it meant then I think its logic would dissolve (I think). I think it also prohibits me from taking any quote (including this one) as a guiding light. 😉 I dunno.

"Only in our dreams are we free. The rest of the time we need wages" Terry Pratchett
Freud and Marx encapsulated in less than 20 words. 🙂 Saves me a LOT of work!

'I'm a pessimist because of intelligence, but an optimist because of will.', Gramsci
Allows me to reconcile the contradictions in my thinking/beliefs.

Buffyverse quote...abridged version.
Spike: "The truth is, I like this world...You've got...Manchester United...You know what I'm saying?"
Self explanatory.

 

[WillowFromBuffy]

4. “Lord, we know what we are, but not what we may be.” Shakespeare

Another powerful, poetic and perfect quote. We *are* here and now, but we don’t know what tomorrow will bring and how it will affect us. It could be our *destiny* catching up. Or it could be our foreseen *failure* showing us that this is not the appropriate way to go. Or it could be a reminder that we have to try our *best*, no matter the task at hand. But ultimately, I read it as acknowledging that destiny is not "fixed" and because of that, we'll never know what tomorrow brings. It might be terrifying to live in constant fear of not knowing. But it's liberating as hell: make the best of "the now" because tomorrow things might change. I read it as a sort of "carpe diem."

 

[November]

"The biggest mistake I made was believing that if I cast a beautiful net, I'd catch only beautiful things."
The naivety of a life lived in safety, before the realities of the world hit ya. (If they do, many here/in the wider western world appear to live securely til death)

"To exist is to survive unfair choices"
I am not really sure what to write about this - I go on too long if I start. It's just a truth.

"It's not really a measure of mental health to be well adjusted in a society that is very sick"
This one speaks for itself really. Those who are so accustomed to the sickness don't even see how sick it is. Or even see sickness where there is none.

All 3 are from The OA. I could probably write a whole 'nother post on her quotes!

And a Buffyverse one.. hmm

"That'll put marzipan in your pie plate, bingo!"
Buffy bot. Predicting the failure of a bot to write its own lines at the time. Does anyone else remember the bot that wrote harry potter?

 

[telperion66]

At their best, both Buffy and Angel are shows that have so many great and memorable quotes that its hard to pin down to just a few.

Just for kicks, how about:

"Let's go for a boat ride..."

 

[telperion66]

Angel season 4 episode 1, Wesley says it to Justine when she's in the closet.

 

[thrasherpix]

"Those who know contentment are wealthy" --Lao Tzu

There are variants on it, some that I think sum it up better, but I chose this one. I don't normally envy the wealthy. They have so many problems and often don't seem to enjoy what they have, and can be as suicidal as anyone. Happiness isn't found through money (at least not for its own sake), but through contentment. Society says this is "settling" and that "wealth is a virtue," but I find that a mistake, and one that is bound to create more suffering than less. (Not that I go to the other extreme of the widow who gives the last of her coins to others described in the New Testament.)

Some Greek philosopher also pointed out how the poor became excited over their feast days because it was something different, and when they had to go hungry they usually shrugged it off. In comparison, the wealthy who thought themselves better were so jaded by having what they wanted when they wanted it could take little pleasure (if even that) on feast days because it was just another day, and they would moan and cry if forced to go hungry.

I was happy with my grandmother as a child. We had food, both wild and our own, and though there was no AC under the hot Texas sun for us, I wasn't used to it and therefore didn't notice it (and could love AC when I did have it, but it was enjoyed rather than taken for granted and therefore didn't feel miserable without it). There was free swimming, hiking, horse riding (*), and the like. Most of all there was love. Discipline was consistent and without hypocrisy. Life was stable and I was happy. Mom and Dad couldn't understand why I was refusing all the bribes to live with one or the other (fighting over child support, and they were promising me a cut). I'd rather be happy, and happiness doesn't come from things. It's an important lesson and I think I'm better off than many Americans for learning it in my head and my gut.

(* I remember when a GS troop I used to belong to tried to make us all get a horse riding badge in which we, that is our parents, had to pay a ridiculous price to be allowed to attend a ranch. Granny offered to let them use our farm for free, but the Troop Leader refused...and in retrospect that doesn't look good, but then they are infamous for their making children sell cookies. 😛)


"If you want the truth to stand clear before you, never be for or against. The struggle between 'for' and 'against' is the mind's worst disease." -- Sent-ts'an

I've learned this myself, and it's something scientists can explain because they can see it happening in brain scans. Objectivity is hard, but it's important for being able to grasp the truth and not get sucked into delusional extremism (this is to include pie in the sky idealism of sheltered kids with noble intentions but no real understanding of how the world works). To fail to do this is to easily be manipulated and even metaphorically (or literally!) enslaved by everything from marketers to special interest groups to even family. And it can lead to wars that will leave misery behind for generations after the war is over. (And here I'll throw in a bonus quote from Mencken: "For every complex problem there is an answer that is clear, simple, and wrong.")

It should not be misconstrued as not giving a damn.


“I know my value. Anyone else’s opinion doesn’t matter” --Agent Carter

I'm actually thinking of getting the wall plaque that says this. I believe this attitude is why I survived growing up in school mostly intact. Of course it can matter when people have the power to harm you, but generally speaking, it's better to have quality over quantity when it comes to friends and such.

Sometimes, the constant drip, drip, drip of messages about me did adversely affect me on a subconscious level. I don't feel like giving examples, so I'll just say that I had to uncover that in my own mind and remind myself of what Agent Carter said. 🙂



Finally: "You have a choice. You don't have a good choice."

Rather than wax long on why I chose this over so many other quotes that I'm sure will be chosen, I'll just share what POTN shared here (starting at 5:16), as it's close enough:

And with that in mind...

"If nothing we do matters, then all that matter is what we do"

And just wanted to comment (where I had room) that this is another one for me. I do a lot of charity work and help others out BECAUSE the world is so cold. If I really believed there was "karmic justice" that was always true, a God to take care of everyone, and similar things, then what is the point? (And I see those who help just to get into Heaven or get good karma as mercenary rather than kind, like back when Spike might do something good IF he got paid for it.) But as misery and bad times are to be expected, then it's important to me to help. I'm cynical, but I'm not cold.

Also, there is actually a great freedom in that we get to make up our own meaning, though I understand why it scares others. And that reminds me of I think something I read in Calvin & Hobbes: "What if nothing we do matters? What if everything we do matters? And which is scarier?"

 

[DeadlyDuo]

"I'll dance with you, pet..... on the slayer's grave!"- WML Part 1- I love the delivery of this line. It's kind of a combi moment where it's not only a joyous moment between to vampire lovers but also a threat to Buffy.

"Okay, okay,,,you've stated your position clearly, now I'm going to state mine. Get in the ****ing car NOW!"- Stand by Me- Again, love the delivery. Kiefer Sutherland during the mid-80s was quite sexy.

"If nothing we do matters, then all that matters is what we do"- Forget which Angel episode it is- It's a nice little reminder that, even if you can't change the world, sometimes a little thing can make a big difference to somebody, Kind of like the girl and the starfish story.

 

[r2dh2]

1. “It was the best of times, it was the worst of times, it was the age of wisdom, it was the age of foolishness, it was the epoch of belief, it was the epoch of incredulity, it was the season of Light, it was the season of Darkness, it was the spring of hope, it was the winter of despair, we had everything before us, we had nothing before us, we were all going direct to Heaven, we were all going direct the other way—in short, the period was so far like the present period, that some of its noisiest authorities insisted on its being received, for good or for evil, in the superlative degree of comparison only.” -- Dickens

For some reason, I’ve always loved this paragraph from A Tale of Two Cities. This reminds me of the fact that opposites co-exist: good/bad, hope/despair, light/darkness… and I interpret it as a dichotomy that will always exist in the world and that we have to learn to live with that.

2. "We few, we happy few… We band of buggered." quasi-Shakespeare (St. Crispin's Day speech) Spike/Giles.

You might feel outnumbered and overwhelmed by whatever is coming after you, but facing adversity with whoever is by your side is already an honor, even though it will likely be futile (Funny how changing one word, changes the meaning).

3. “The two most important days in your life are the day you are born and the day you find out why.” —Mark Twain.

If you’re up for self-reflection and are having trouble dealing with existentialism, here’s a quote for you. In my case, I started asking myself about the purpose and the meaning of my life a few years ago. Not much progress achieved so far, but at least I have the questions.

 

[November]

Glory:
I look around at this world you're so eager to be a part of and all I see is six billion lunatics looking for the fastest ride out. Who's not crazy? Look around, everyone's drinking, smoking, shooting up, shooting each other, or just plain screwing their brains out 'cause they don't want 'em anymore. I'm crazy? Honey, I'm the original one-eyed chicklet in the kingdom of the blind, 'cause at least I admit the world makes me nuts.
'
Me when I wear a Glory av 😉 My brain is not in it today, another "is this crazy" moment or is my body telling me something. This quote reminds me that there are people crazier than me, no one admits it. We're all just coping in a crazy world, admitting it will only make you look crazier.

"You are not free just because you can see the ocean. Captivity is a mentality. It’s a thing you carry with you"
Another from The OA. Important to me with a rational fear of losing freedom at any moment. Which leads on to the freedom of this one for me -

31 So do not worry, saying, ‘What shall we eat?’ or ‘What shall we drink?’ or ‘What shall we wear?’

32 For the pagans run after all these things, and your heavenly Father knows that you need them.

33 But seek first his kingdom and his righteousness, and all these things will be given to you as well.

34 Therefore do not worry about tomorrow, for tomorrow will worry about itself. Each day has enough trouble of its own.

It cures my anxiety and is helpful in meditation.

 

[spikenbuffy]

"I think now, looking back, we did not fight the enemy; we fought ourselves. And the enemy was in us. The war is over for me now, but it will always be there, the rest of my days as I'm sure Elias will be, fighting with Barnes for what Rhah called possession of my soul. There are times since, I've felt like the child born of those two fathers. But, be that as it may, those of us who did make it have an obligation to build again, to teach to others what we know, and to try with what's left of our lives to find a goodness and a meaning to this life. "

from the movie Platoon.

 

[Taake]

"Remove the judgement, and you have removed the thought 'I am hurt': remove the thought 'I am hurt', and the hurt itself is removed." - Marcus Aurelius
Or it's cousin "sticks and stones may break my bones, but words will never hurt me". Point isn't that words can't hurt, if they didn't, the saying wouldn't be a thing because it wouldn't be necessary, but as I learned many years ago in CBT - you can't control the world, only your reactions to it. It's good to remember to spare oneself the trouble to control ones environment

"Dig inside yourself. inside there is a spring of goodness ready to gush at any moment, if you keep digging." - Marcus Aurelius
Kindness lives within you, whatever else you tell yourself or how life and disappointment can foster bitterness, most people are good people, and we do ourselves a disservice when we get bogged down by pettiness and antagonisms. And on that note,

"Anxiety weighs down the heart, but a kind word cheers it up" - Proverbs 12:25

"Life is paradise, and we are all in paradise, but we refuse to see it" - Fyodor Dostoevsky
I actually have a tote bag with this quote, I love it, but people often find it intensely provocative. It can be, naturally, depending on definition and perception. I like it as a reminder to appreciate mere life, with all its flaws, and the power of ones own attitude.

Buffy quote
"Oh, you're a piece of work. I like you." - Spike
The most interesting people are often the ones who, in some way provoke your attention or make you think, even if you don't agree with them.

 

[r2dh2]

“The purpose of life is a life of purpose.” ― Robert Byrne
Self-explanatory. We need purpose in our lives. I keep searching for mine.

“I wanted a mission, and for my sins, they gave me one.” ― Apocalypse Now
Punishment and redemption. To atone for our sins, we might need a mission. Reminds me a lot BtVS and two of its most important topics: the mission and repentance.

“In the midst of chaos, there is also opportunity” ― Sun-Tzu
We can make lemonade when we’re handed lemons, that works in life and war.

Angelus: “No weapons. No friends. No hope. Take all that away and what’s left?”
Buffy: “Me.”
This is an incredibly sad episode and such a powerful response. We have strength and power within us.

 

[HowiMetdaSlayer]

We meet people, and fall in love, and when we part they leave marks for us to remember them by. Our lovers sculpt us, they define us, for better or worse. Like a pinball, we slam into them and rebound in our different directions, propelled by the contact, and after the parting we might be scared, stronger or more fragile, or needy, or angry, or guilty, but never unchanged. Our lovers linger inside us, like ghosts, haunting the corridors and deserted rooms, sometimes whispering, sometimes screaming, but always there, waiting...
- George from intro to 5th episode of S1 of Being Human (UK). Just a great analogy and also quite true.

More of a rant, but sadly (mostly) true...

Don't know if speeches count? If so...

What, do you want to tempt the wrath of the... whatever, from high atop the thing? - Toby (West Wing)

Bored Now! - Willow 😀

 

[November]

“I think where I am not, therefore I am where I do not think. I am not whenever I am the plaything of my thought; I think of what I am where I do not think to think.” Jacques Lacan.
Lacan's response to Descartes' Cogito (I think). If I said what I thought it meant then I think its logic would dissolve (I think). I think it also prohibits me from taking any quote (including this one) as a guiding light. 😉 I dunno.

I think too much. Thinking too much on this one makes me prefer a guiding light to pull me out of the thinking and back on to the plain haha.