wonderful words

I remember the first time I picked up a book of quotable quotes from Mindy's bookshelf. As a teacher, I was constantly trying to think of little ways to improve my classroom's environment. Make it feel safe, full of energy, and if I got lucky, somewhat inspiring. As I perused through the book I found myself laughing out loud, nodding in agreement, and at times being moved by the words in print. Not long after that first introduction into the world of words, I began using a "quote of the day" as a discussion prompt in my science classroom. The students ate it up, some would even write the quotes down in their notebooks. It became routine, one of those routines where if I forgot to start class with the quote, I would get three or four students urgently reminding me of my grievous error.

So here I am years removed from my science classroom and still sitting down with a book of quotes. Still laughing, still nodding in agreement, and at times being moved. To give you a picture of what I mean, I've chosen a few special ones for the readers of this blog.

• a laughing quote: "If the world were a logical place, men would ride side-saddle." - Rita Mae Brown
• a nodding quote: "The world is not conclusion. A sequel stands beyond - invisible, as music - but positive, as sound." - Emily Dickinson
• a moving quote: "I don't want to get to the end of my life and find that I lived just the length of it. I want to have lived the width of it as well." - Diane Ackerman