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Mary Schmich

Mary Schmich Books

Journalist

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“Enjoy the power and beauty of your youth; oh nevermind; you will not understand the power and beauty of your youth until they have faded. But trust me, in 20 years you’ll look back at photos of yourself and recall in a way you can’t grasp now how much possibility lay before you and how fabulous you really looked….You’re not as fat as you imagine. Don’t worry about the future; or worry, but know that worrying is as effective as trying to solve an algebra equation by chewing bubblegum. The real troubles in your life are apt to be things that never crossed your worried mind; the kind that blindside you at 4pm on some idle Tuesday. Do one thing everyday that scares you Sing Don’t be reckless with other people’s hearts, don’t put up with people who are reckless with yours. Floss Don’t waste your time on jealousy; sometimes you’re ahead, sometimes you’re behind…the race is long, and in the end, it’s only with yourself. Remember the compliments you receive, forget the insults; if you succeed in doing this, tell me how. Keep your old love letters, throw away your old bank statements. Stretch Don’t feel guilty if you don’t know what you want to do with your life…the most interesting people I know didn’t know at 22 what they wanted to do with their lives, some of the most interesting 40 year olds I know still don’t. Get plenty of calcium. Be kind to your knees, you’ll miss them when they’re gone. Maybe you’ll marry, maybe you won’t, maybe you’ll have children,maybe you won’t, maybe you’ll divorce at 40, maybe you’ll dance the funky chicken on your 75th wedding anniversary…what ever you do, don’t congratulate yourself too much or berate yourself either – your choices are half chance, so are everybody else’s. Enjoy your body, use it every way you can…don’t be afraid of it, or what other people think of it, it’s the greatest instrument you’ll ever own.. Dance…even if you have nowhere to do it but in your own living room. Read the directions, even if you don’t follow them. Do NOT read beauty magazines, they will only make you feel ugly. Get to know your parents, you never know when they’ll be gone for good. Be nice to your siblings; they are the best link to your past and the people most likely to stick with you in the future. Understand that friends come and go,but for the precious few you should hold on. Work hard to bridge the gaps in geography and lifestyle because the older you get, the more you need the people you knew when you were young.”

InspiringThinkNot Baz LuhrmannNot Kurt Vonnegut
Author:Mary Schmich
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“Don't waste your time on jealousy; sometimes you're ahead, sometimes you're behind. The race is long, and in the end, it's only with yourself. Remember compliments you receive, forget the insults; if you succeed in doing this, tell me how.”

IfsLongEndsSometimesRememberForgetRaceBehindsAdviceSucceedWasteInsultComplimentDon't Waste Your TimeSunscreenCompliments YouWear Sunscreen
Book:The Best of Mary Schmich: Selected Writings by the Chicago Tribune's Winner of the 2012 Pulitzer Prize for Commentary
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“The cell phone has transformed public places into giant phone-a-thons in which callers exist within narcissistic cocoons of private conversations. Like faxes, computer modems and other modern gadgets that have clogged out lives with phony urgency, cell phones represent the 20th Century's escalation of imaginary need. We didn't need cell phones until we had them. Clearly, cell phones cause not only a breakdown of courtesy, but the atrophy of basic skills.”

NeedsCausesModernCenturySkillsConversationComputerPhonesCellsGiantsTransformedImaginary20th CenturyCourtesyNarcissisticCell PhoneUrgencyBreakdownPhonyGadgetsCocoonsAtrophyFaxEscalation
Author:Mary Schmich
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“Dance, even if you have nowhere to do it but your living room.”

IfsInspirationalRoomsDancingDanceDancerBalletLiving RoomJust DanceChoreographyBallet DancerBallroomInspirational DanceMusic And DanceDance ClassShort DanceBallroom DanceBallroom DancingBallet DanceSunscreenBallet DancingMotivational DanceArt DanceWear SunscreenBallet ClassTap DancersRumba
Book:The Best of Mary Schmich: Selected Writings by the Chicago Tribune's Winner of the 2012 Pulitzer Prize for Commentary
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“I couldn't have foreseen all the good things that have followed my mother's death. The renewed energy, the surprising sweetness of grief. The tenderness I feel for strangers on walkers. The deeper love I have for my siblings and friends. The desire to play the mandolin. The gift of a visitation.”

FeelsPlayMotherDesireEnergyGriefGood ThingsDeeperStrangerSurprisingTendernessSweetnessSiblingWalkersMy SiblingsVisitationForeseenDeeper Love
Book:The Best of Mary Schmich: Selected Writings by the Chicago Tribune's Winner of the 2012 Pulitzer Prize for Commentary
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“Opening day. All you have to do is say the words and you feel the shutters thrown wide, the room air out, the light pour in. In baseball, no other day is so pure with possibility. No scores yet, no losses, no blame or disappointment. No hangover, at least until the game's over.”

FeelsLightGamesLossRoomsAirPossibilityPureBaseballBlameDisappointmentWideOpeningScoreThrownHangoverShuttersOpening DayBaseball Opening DayOpening Day Baseball
Book:The Best of Mary Schmich: Selected Writings by the Chicago Tribune's Winner of the 2012 Pulitzer Prize for Commentary
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“Understand that friends come and go, but with a precious few you should hold on. The older you get, the more you need the people who knew you when you were young.”

PeopleNeedsShouldYoungFriendshipHolding OnComes And GoesMany FriendsSunscreenWear SunscreenFriends Come And Go
Book:The Best of Mary Schmich: Selected Writings by the Chicago Tribune's Winner of the 2012 Pulitzer Prize for Commentary
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“Don't worry about the future. Or worry, but know that worrying is as effective as trying to solve an algebra equation by chewing bubble gum. The real troubles in your life are apt to be things that never crossed your worried mind, the kind that blindside you at 4 p.m. on some idle Tuesday.”

KnowsTryingMindKindRealWorryTroubleAdviceSolveWorriedBubblesIdleEquationsTuesdayAlgebraGumChewingSunscreenWear SunscreenBubble Gum
Book:The Best of Mary Schmich: Selected Writings by the Chicago Tribune's Winner of the 2012 Pulitzer Prize for Commentary
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“Accept certain inalienable truths, prices will rise, politicians will philander, you too will get old, and when you do you'll fantasize that when you were young prices were reasonable, politicians were noble and children respected their elders.”

ChildrenYoungCertainAcceptingPoliticianNobleReasonableEldersSunscreenWear Sunscreen
Book:The Best of Mary Schmich: Selected Writings by the Chicago Tribune's Winner of the 2012 Pulitzer Prize for Commentary
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“Live in New York City once, but leave before it makes you hard. Live in Northern California once, but leave before it makes you soft”

HardCitiesNew YorkCaliforniaNew York CitySunscreenWear SunscreenNorthern California
Book:The Best of Mary Schmich: Selected Writings by the Chicago Tribune's Winner of the 2012 Pulitzer Prize for Commentary
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“Do one thing every day that scares you... Enjoy your body. Use it every way you can. Don't be afraid of it or of what other people think of it. It's the greatest instrument you'll ever own... Be careful whose advice you buy, but be patient with those who supply it. Advice is a form of nostalgia. Dispensing it is a way of fishing the past from the disposal, wiping it off, painting over the ugly parts and recycling it for more than it's worth.”

PeopleThinkingWayUseBodyPastFormEnjoyOne ThingAdvicePaintingInstrumentsPatientCarefulUglyNostalgiaYour BodyFishingScareBe CarefulBe PatientRecyclingSunscreenWear Sunscreen
Author:Mary Schmich
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“On an average day, we allow ourselves the fiction that we own a piece of our workplace. That's part of what it takes to get the job done. Deeper down, we know it's all on loan.”

KnowsDoneJobsFictionPiecesAverageDeeperWorkplaceLoanGet The Job Done
Book:The Best of Mary Schmich: Selected Writings by the Chicago Tribune's Winner of the 2012 Pulitzer Prize for Commentary
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“A line from one of my 1997 columns - 'Do one thing every day that scares you' - is now widely attributed to Eleanor Roosevelt, though I have yet to see any evidence that she ever said it and I don't believe she did. She said some things about fear, but not that thing.”

BelieveSaidLinesOne ThingEvidenceDon't BelieveScareColumnsEleanor
Book:The Best of Mary Schmich: Selected Writings by the Chicago Tribune's Winner of the 2012 Pulitzer Prize for Commentary
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“Here's a thing about the death of your mother, or anyone else you love: You can't anticipate how you'll feel afterward. People will tell you; a few may be close to right, none exactly right.”

PeopleFeelsMayMotherLove YouAnticipate
Book:The Best of Mary Schmich: Selected Writings by the Chicago Tribune's Winner of the 2012 Pulitzer Prize for Commentary
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“Don’t feel guilty if you don’t know what you want to do with your life…the most interesting people I know didn’t know at 22 what they wanted to do with their lives, some of the most interesting 40 year olds I know still don’t.”

PeopleIfsKnowsWantFeelsYearsStillsWantedInterestingAdviceWhat You WantGuiltyMost InterestingSunscreenWear Sunscreen
Book:The Best of Mary Schmich: Selected Writings by the Chicago Tribune's Winner of the 2012 Pulitzer Prize for Commentary
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“Maybe you’ll marry, maybe you won’t, maybe you’ll have children, maybe you won’t, maybe you’ll divorce at 40, maybe you’ll dance the funky chicken on your 75th wedding anniversary…what ever you do, don’t congratulate yourself too much or berate yourself either – your choices are half chance, so are everybody else’s.”

ChildrenChoicesChanceHalfToo MuchDivorceChickensWedding AnniversaryFunkySunscreenWear Sunscreen
Book:The Best of Mary Schmich: Selected Writings by the Chicago Tribune's Winner of the 2012 Pulitzer Prize for Commentary
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