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Outsider Quotes

Browse 78 quotes about Outsider.

Outsider Quotes

“I had to be strong, for every man and woman in our fair community was here to witness my beloved being put to rest, some with satisfaction, and some with relief. But all would gather an accounting of the events here today, to be relayed at future balls and parlour teas, as a comeuppance for my marrying an outsider.”

CommunityOutsiderJudgemental PeopleGossip MongersFunereal
Book:Girl Desecrated: Vampires, Asylums and Highlanders 1984
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“Since my visit to the Hermitage, I had become more aware of the four figures, two women and two men, who stood around the luminous space where the father welcomed his returning son. Their way of looking leaves you wondering how they think or feel about what they are watching. These bystanders, or observers, allow for all sorts of interpretations. As I reflect on my own journey, I become more and more aware of how long I have played the role of observer. For years I had instructed students on the different aspects of the spiritual life, trying to help them see the importance of living it. But had I, myself, really ever dared to step into the center, kneel down, and let myself be held by a forgiving God? The simple fact of being able to express an opinion, to set up an argument, to defend a position, and to clarify a vision has given me, and gives me still, a sense of control. And, generally, I feel much safer in experiencing a sense of control over an undefinable situation than in taking the risk of letting that situation control me. Certainly there were many hours of prayer, many days and months of retreat, and countless conversations with spiritual directors, but I had never fully given up the role of bystander. Even though there has been in me a lifelong desire to be an insider looking out, I nevertheless kept choosing over and over again the position of the outsider looking in. Sometimes this looking-in was a curious looking-in, sometimes a jealous looking-in, sometimes an anxious looking-in, and, once in a while, even a loving looking-in. But giving up the somewhat safe position of the critical observer seemed like a great leap into totally unknown territory. I so much wanted to keep some control over my spiritual journey, to be able to predict at least a part of the outcome, that relinquishing the security of the observer for the vulnerability of the returning son seemed close to impossible. Teaching students, passing on the many explanations given over the centuries to the words and actions of Jesus, and showing them the many spiritual journeys that people have chosen in the past seemed very much like taking the position of one of the four figures surrounding the divine embrace. The two women standing behind the father at different distances the seated man staring into space and looking at no one in particular, and the tall man standing erect and looking critically at the event on the platform in front of him--they all represent different ways of not getting involved. There is indifference, curiosity, daydreaming, and attentive observation; there is staring, gazing, watching, and looking; there is standing in the background, leaning against an arch, sitting with arms crossed, and standing with hands gripping each other. Every one of these inner and outward postures are all too familiar with me. Some are more comfortable than others, but all of them are ways of not getting directly involved," (pp. 12-13).”

ControlOutsiderProdigal SonObserverRembrandt
Book:The Return of the Prodigal Son: A Story of Homecoming
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“You are a Goddess, a Daughter of the Moon." But, now more than ever, Tianna was certain it had been a mistake. She felt like a fraud--- just a girl, not a goddess. Besides, she was the outsider; she hadn't been born a Daughter, like Serena, Vanessa, Jimena, and Catty. Selene, the goddess of the moon, had looked down and decided to make her a Daughter because she had saved the others from the Followers of an ancient evil called the Atrox.”

DifferentGoddessOutsiderTianna Moore
Book:The Becoming
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“Our unclaimed Shunemite, however, can only look on. No kiss for her. Being the most beautiful woman in Israel isn't enough for Solomon. Solomon is seeking partners to help him grow a very special nation. Abishag is relegated to wishing Solomon's new wives well, but in the mean time, her life as an outsider is bitter. 'Take me away,' she will later lament.”

PartnersLamentOutsiderSong Of SongsSong Of SolomonShulamiteShunemiteAbishagMost Beautiful Woman In IsraelSpecial Nation
Book:Song of Songs: The Book for Daughters
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“I refuse to share the thoughts of the ordinary. I am the outsider not because they expelled me but because I expelled them! I have rejected the world. I am contra mundum. I have climbed on top of the moon and deflected the earth from its path. I have put out the fires of the sun with just one of my tears.”

TruthMajorityRebelDreamerHereticOutsiderMinorityExcommunicationContra Mundum
Book:The Mistletoe Murders: A Nietzschean Murder Mystery
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“All any alienated man can hope for is to find a livelihood that fits his expanding sense of self. Blessed is he who accepts without complaint the toil that is suited for the riot of his soul. Blessed is he who discovers a calling that he willingly devotes his entire heart and soul to accomplishing. Blessed is he who exhausts himself performing whatever his inner nature demands. Blessed is he who dares to seek, search, discover, and to create what he cannot suppress. Blessed is he who gives air to what he cannot strangle within and still live a full life any more than one can choose to stop breathing and maintain a heartbeat. Blessed is he who raises himself to a higher pitch and institutes harmony within himself. Blessed is he who loves his family, cares for his people, and radiates a vast love for the hills, rivers, creeks, mountains, tress, sky, and all the birds, plants, grasses, marshes, and the multitudes of creatures that call nature’s wonderland their paradise.”

IsolationExileAlienationOutcastLife GoalsOutsiderLove OthersLove Of NatureSocial Outcasts
Book:Dead Toad Scrolls
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“The Dark Cloud Is the emotional baggage that you got from the hatred and hostility you were dealt because you tried to succeed Is the short end of the stick that outsiders receive even though they are the ones who lead Is the mental health crisis of your close family members because they went through war Is the appalling behavior of jealous fools who choose to keep score”

WarSuccessLeaderFamilyHatredMental HealthJealousyOutsider
Book:The Dark Cloud
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“Along the way I stopped into a coffee shop. All around me normal, everyday city types were going about their normal, everyday affairs. Lovers were whispering to each other, businessmen were poring over spread sheets, college kids were planning their next ski trip and discussing the new Police album. We could have been in any city in Japan. Transplant this coffee shop scene to Yokohama or Fukuoka and nothing would seem out of place. In spite of which -- or, rather, all the more because -- here I was, sitting in this coffee shop, drinking my coffee, feeling a desperate loneliness. I alone was the outsider. I had no place here. Of course, by the same token, I couldn't really say I belonged to Tokyo and its coffee shops. But I had never felt this loneliness there. I could drink my coffee, read my book, pass the time of day without any special thought, all because I was part of the regular scenery. Here I had no ties to anyone. Fact is, I'd come to reclaim myself.”

LonelinessTiesCity LifeNormalityTokyoOutsiderReclaimCoffee Shops
Book:Dance Dance Dance
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