Collecting quotations has been one of my lifelong hobbies. In the pre-computer days, I would jot down quotations on slips of paper and toss them in a desk drawer. Once a month, I would type them up and place them in a special file folder. I’ve kept the folder but now use Pinterest and Goodreads to store my quotations.

These quotations resonate during this season of my life:

“If I waited for perfection, I would never write a word.” ~ Margaret Atwood

“Writing a novel is like driving a car at night. You can only see as far as your headlights, but you can make the whole trip that way.” ~ E. L. Doctorow

Continue reading on the Soul Mate Authors blog.

An Emmy-winning journalist and celebrity interviewer, Barbara Walters was one of the most recognizable news anchors in the world. In a career that spanned over six decades, Ms. Walters appeared on numerous television programs including Today, ABC Evening News, 20/20, and The View. She scored many interview coups, among them Margaret Thatcher, the Shah of Iran, Fidel Castro, Anwar Sadat and Menachem Begin, Katharine Hepburn, and Indira Gandhi.

Barbara Walters died yesterday (December 30, 2022) at the age of 93.

My favorite quotations from Barbara Walters:

Life sometimes brings enormous difficulties and challenges that seem just too hard to bear. But bear them you can, and bear them you will, and your life can have a purpose.

To excel is to reach your own highest dream. But you must also help others, where and when you can, to reach theirs. Personal gain is empty if you do not feel you have positively touched another’s life.

To feel valued, to know, even if only once in a while that you can do a job well is an absolutely marvelous feeling.

Success can make you go one of two ways. It can make you a prima donna—or it can smooth the edges, take away the insecurities, let the nice things come out.

Don’t worry about finding your bliss right now. Not even our President knew what his bliss was, nor did I. One of these days to your own surprise, your bliss will find you. But no matter what you do, participate, be there, full force, full heart, full steam ahead.

A good laugh makes any interview, or any conversation, so much better.

Don’t confuse being stimulating with being blunt.

The hardest thing you will ever do is trust yourself.

You’ll have some failure. And you’ll be able to go on, add a new chapter, and have a more interesting time.

Work harder than everybody. You’re not going to get it by whining, and you’re not going to get it by shouting, and you’re not going to get it by quitting.

Earlier today, Queen Elizabeth died peacefully at Balmoral.

The longest-reigning monarch in Great Britain, Queen Elizabeth leaves an extraordinary legacy. A steadying force through many crises during the seventy years of her reign, she oversaw the transition from a British Empire and Dominion to a Commonwealth of equal nations. She became the most well-traveled monarch in history, visiting over 100 countries. Her message of continuity and stability has resonated with millions worldwide.

My Favorite Quotations from Queen Elizabeth II

“It’s worth remembering that it is often the small steps, not the giant leaps, that bring about the most lasting change.”

”It has always been easy to hate and destroy. To build and to cherish is much more difficult.”

“When life seems hard, the courageous do not lie down and accept defeat; instead, they are all the more determined to struggle for a better future.”

“I have to be seen to be believed.”

“It is through this lens of history that we should view the conflicts of today, and so give us hope for tomorrow.”

“Although we are capable of great acts of kindness, history teaches us that we sometimes need saving from ourselves–from our recklessness or our greed.”

“We may hold different points of view but it is in times of stress and difficulty that we most need to remember that we have much more in common than there is dividing us.”

“By being willing to put past differences behind us and move forward together, we honour the freedom and democracy once won for us at so great a cost.”

“With age does come experience and that can be a virtue if it is sensibly used.”

“Even when your life seems most monotonous, what you do is always of real value and importance to your fellow men.”

A pop culture icon and activist for environmental and animal rights, Olivia Newton-John bravely shared her three-decade battle with cancer.

Olivia was born in England and emigrated to Australia as a child. She achieved early success in music competitions and sold an estimated 100 million records worldwide, making her one of the best-selling artists of all time. She shot to global fame when she was cast as Sandy in the musical Grease.

After receiving a diagnosis of breast cancer, Olivia became a leading advocate for cancer research. In addition to promoting plant-based treatments and spearheading fundraising walks, she created the Olivia Newton-John Cancer and Wellness Centre in Melbourne, Australia.

Her philanthropic efforts were recognized by Queen Elizabeth in 2020.

Dame Olivia Newton-John passed away yesterday at the age of 73.

My favorite quotations from Olivia Newton-John:

I believe love is what makes the world go round. No matter how old or young, love is why we are here. It is the very essence of one’s being.

I love that quiet time when nobody’s up and the animals are all happy to see me.

I do have high standards, but I don’t expect anything from anyone that I don’t expect from myself.

We wake up and are grateful for the day. Not taking away from the pain, because the pain will be there. But you live on.

I look at my cancer journey as a gift: It made me slow down and realize the important things in life and taught me to not sweat the small stuff.

My biggest mistake was my best lesson…you don’t learn anything when everything is going perfectly.

My memories are inside me – they’re not things or a place – I can take them anywhere.

To ‘be loved’ is the most basic of human needs. Like a flower, it waters the human soul. But ‘to love’ is a true blessing.

Cancer got me over unimportant fears, like getting old.

Once you face fear, nothing is ever as hard as you think.

My favorite song

A woman of great passion and intelligence, Madeleine Albright served as the first female Secretary of State in American history. During her tenure (1997- 2001), she worked to advance human rights, curb nuclear weapons, enlarge NATO, and mend Arab-Israeli relations. A fierce advocate for democracy, she received many awards and accolades, including the Presidential Medal of Freedom.

Madeleine Albright passed away yesterday (March 23, 2022) at the age of 84.

My favorite quotations from Madeleine Alright:

It took me quite a long time to develop a voice, and now that I have it, I am not going to be silent.

Our collective experience has shown that when women have the power to make their own choices, good things happen.

I have very set and consistent principles, but I am flexible on tactics.

I was taught to strive not because there were any guarantees of success but because the act of striving is in itself the only way to keep faith with life.

Whatever the job you are asked to do at whatever level, do a good job because your reputation is your résumé.

There is a special place in hell for women who don’t help other women.

The difference between humans and other mammals is that we know how to accessorize.

The best book, like the best speech, will do it all—make us laugh, think, cry and cheer—preferably in that order.

History is written backwards but lived forwards.

The real question is: Who has the responsibility to uphold human rights? The answer to that is: Everyone.