"The wind shows us how close to the edge we are."
"Most of our platitudes notwithstanding, self-deception remains the most difficult deception. The tricks that work on others count for nothing in that very well-lit back alley where one keeps assignation with oneself: no winning smiles will do here, no prettily drawn lists of good intentions. One shuffles flashily but in vain through one's marked cards- the kindness done for the wrong reason, the apparent triumph which involved no real effort, the seemingly heroic act into which one had been shamed."
4 likes
Source: Joan Didion (1968). “Slouching towards Bethlehem”
About the author
Same author
More quotes by Joan Didion
"The willingness to accept responsibility for one's own life is the source from which self-respect springs."
"To cure jealousy is to see it for what it is, a dissatisfaction with self."
"We are well advised to keep on nodding terms with the people we used to be, whether we find them attractive company or not."
"I write entirely to find out what I'm thinking, what I'm looking at, what I see and what it means. What I want and what I fear."
"Memory fades, memory adjusts, memory conforms to what we think we remember."