Elizabeth Bowen

“The first blush of anything is the best.”

“One can live without friends, but one cannot live without neighbours.”

“Jealousy is no more than feeling alone against smiling enemies.”

“Innocence is not seen in the moment of being experienced. It is only remembered.”

“Surprises are foolish things. The pleasure is not enhanced, and the inconvenience is often considerable.”

“Never to lie is to have no lock on your door.”

“Only the insincere can be charming.”

“When you love someone, all your saved-up wishes start coming out.”

“No object is mysterious. The mystery is your eye.”

“Language is the only thing worth knowing even poorly.”

“Fate is not an eagle, it creeps like a rat.”

“Disappointment is a sort of bankruptcy - the bankruptcy of a soul that expends too much in hope and expectation.”

“A talk is a voyage. It must be charted.”

“The human heart is a vagabond.”

“Imagination is the power of the mind over the possibilities of things.”

“The best that is felt is not said.”

“It is not our exalted feelings, it is our sentiments that build the necessary home.”