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Quote by Betty MacDonald

“Mrs. Campbell was round and cozy with sparkling brown eyes, curly brown hair, and rosy cheeks, but she wasn't beautiful. Mr. Campbell was tall and thin with merry blue eyes and stiff sandy hair, but he wasn't handsome. They were good and kind however, and oftentimes, goodness and kindness cast a glow over people that passes very well for beauty.”

Quote by Betty MacDonald

Work

Nancy and Plum

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Author

Betty MacDonald
Betty MacDonald

Betty MacDonald was an American author known for her humorous and autobiographical works. Her writing often focused on family life and the role of mothers, with her most famous book being 'The Glass Castle'. Born on March 26, 1908, she passed away on February 7, 1958. more

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“Paz was a few years older than her; looked younger. Hero saw her alone on the veranda, in a black dress patterned with what looked like large sampaguita vines. Her center-parted hair reached just to the top of her ass; it was the most expensive-looking thing about her. She appeared to understand that beauty, at least, was also a kind of wealth.”

“E poi è crudele, ed è necessario dirlo: c’è sempre un momento in cui una donna chiede a se stessa se realmente siano state le grandi qualità morali del suo amante a soggiogarla. Perché in quel caso ci sarebbero delle giustificazioni. E c’è una profonda umiliazione nella nostra coscienza quando arriviamo a convincerci che se amiamo un uomo non è stata solo la nobiltà delle sue idee e l’ideale dei suoi sentimenti a dominarci, ma un non-so-che, in cui c’entra forse il colore dei suoi capelli e il nodo della sua cravatta. Siamo franche, perché mascherare la pochezza delle nostre inclinazioni? Perché colorare di ideali l’origine volgare delle nostre preferenze? Non voglio dire che l’integrità morale non sia un poderoso incentivo alla simpatia istintiva, ma ciò che in realtà ci colpisce è l’aspetto esteriore di un uomo. Tutte coloro che leggeranno queste dolorose confidenze si consultino nel silenzio del proprio cuore e dicano che cosa ha suscitato in loro quella sensazione: se è stato il carattere o l’aspetto. E le più franche diranno che nella vita influisce forse di più il colore del frac che la grandezza d’animo.”

“Life is an opportunity. Rarely do we see that life is a gift and an opportunity to grow, to be. Even misery is an opportunity, because it is out of misery that the desire for joy arises. it is only out of darkness that the desire for light arises. Life means all that it contains: joy and sadness, love and aloneness, good and bad, positive and negative experience and success and failure. All is God's gracious gifts. Meditation means to recognize that all has been given to you as a gift and an opportunity  to grow. We have not earned it, and we are not grateful for the beauty of existence. Meditation is to learn to be thankful to existence. Gratefulness will make you come closer to God.”