246 Quotes by Elif Shafak

Loneliness was an inseparable part of being human.

It seemed to Jahan that, in truth, this world, too, was a spectacle. One way or another, everyone was parading. They performed their tricks, each of them, some staying longer, others shorter, but in the end they all left through the back door, similarly unfulfilled, similarly in need of applause.

Little did he know, back then, that the worth of one's faith depended not on how solid and strong it was, but on how many times one would lose it and still be able to get it back.

Grief is a swallow,' he said. 'One day you wake up and you think it's gone, but it's only migrated to some other place, warming its feathers. Sooner or later, it will return and perch in your heart again.

Grief is a swallow,” he said. “One day you wake up and you think it's gone, but it's only migrated to some other place, warming its feathers. Sooner or later, it will return and perch in your heart again.

Her Majesty the Queen teaches me a deep human truth-that motherhood has a pen name: guilt.

Every winner is inclined to think he will be triumphant forever. Every loser tends to fear that he is going to be beaten forever. But both are wrong for the same reason: Everything changes except the face of god.

Peri loved words. She held them in her palms like eggs about to hatch, their tiny hearts beating against her skin, full of life.

Your destiny is the level where you will play your tune. You might not change your instrument but how well to play is entirely in your hands.