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Compared to the surrounding blackness, it sparkles and dazzles our eyes. But are these actually truths? Are our eyes really feasting upon light? Or just patches of grey?",2,false,{"id":5,"author_name":6,"slug":10,"author_name_first_letter":7,"article_count":8,"image_url":9},{},[59,62,65,70,73],{"id":60,"tag":61},2054770,{"id":13,"tag_name":14},{"id":63,"tag":64},2054769,{"id":16,"tag_name":17},{"id":66,"tag":67},2054774,{"id":68,"tag_name":69},2201,"new-adult",{"id":71,"tag":72},2054775,{"id":20,"tag_name":21},{"id":74,"tag":75},2054765,{"id":23,"tag_name":24},{"id":77,"quote_text":78,"author_id":5,"source_id":54,"has_image":55,"author":79,"source":80,"quote_tag":81,"commentary":9},345252,"It was just a word. It took nothing from him. It made him feel only as low as he allowed himself to feel. His own brother used it in conversation habitually. But not in the same way - filled with malice, overflowing with insult. He couldn't tear his eyes away, shook with lust for retribution. Six little letters making one huge statement. NIGGER.",{"id":5,"author_name":6,"slug":10,"author_name_first_letter":7,"article_count":8,"image_url":9},{},[82,85,88,91],{"id":83,"tag":84},2054709,{"id":13,"tag_name":14},{"id":86,"tag":87},2054708,{"id":16,"tag_name":17},{"id":89,"tag":90},2054710,{"id":20,"tag_name":21},{"id":92,"tag":93},2054707,{"id":23,"tag_name":24},{"id":95,"quote_text":96,"author_id":5,"source_id":54,"has_image":55,"author":97,"source":98,"quote_tag":99,"commentary":9},345242,"A tightrope walker uncertain if he could make it to the other side probably would not. A race car driver wondering if he was taking a turn too fast was likely to lose control. If a man feared death, whether his own or the taking of another's, death would surely come calling.",{"id":5,"author_name":6,"slug":10,"author_name_first_letter":7,"article_count":8,"image_url":9},{},[100,103,106,109],{"id":101,"tag":102},2054670,{"id":13,"tag_name":14},{"id":104,"tag":105},2054667,{"id":16,"tag_name":17},{"id":107,"tag":108},2054672,{"id":20,"tag_name":21},{"id":110,"tag":111},2054666,{"id":23,"tag_name":24},{"id":113,"quote_text":114,"author_id":5,"source_id":54,"has_image":55,"author":115,"source":116,"quote_tag":117,"commentary":9},345118,"He now realized that right and wrong were intertwined notions. His arms could not differentiate between just and unjust causes. They only knew that they were empty.",{"id":5,"author_name":6,"slug":10,"author_name_first_letter":7,"article_count":8,"image_url":9},{},[118,121,124,127,130],{"id":119,"tag":120},2053876,{"id":13,"tag_name":14},{"id":122,"tag":123},2053875,{"id":16,"tag_name":17},{"id":125,"tag":126},2053877,{"id":68,"tag_name":69},{"id":128,"tag":129},2053878,{"id":20,"tag_name":21},{"id":131,"tag":132},2053874,{"id":23,"tag_name":24},{"id":134,"quote_text":135,"author_id":5,"source_id":54,"has_image":55,"author":136,"source":137,"quote_tag":138,"commentary":9},345110,"There were many tomorrows to be lived through his children. He could only hope that they would face them more courageously than he had, that his mistakes would serve as warning signs rather than crutches to lean on.",{"id":5,"author_name":6,"slug":10,"author_name_first_letter":7,"article_count":8,"image_url":9},{},[139,142,145,148,151],{"id":140,"tag":141},2053841,{"id":13,"tag_name":14},{"id":143,"tag":144},2053840,{"id":16,"tag_name":17},{"id":146,"tag":147},2053842,{"id":68,"tag_name":69},{"id":149,"tag":150},2053843,{"id":20,"tag_name":21},{"id":152,"tag":153},2053839,{"id":23,"tag_name":24},{"id":155,"quote_text":156,"author_id":5,"source_id":54,"has_image":55,"author":157,"source":158,"quote_tag":159,"commentary":9},345104,"Time had taught him that whether his sins were pardoned or left unforgiven, they would remain committed. Tomorrow he would hopefully choose wiser, with a stronger measure of compassion.",{"id":5,"author_name":6,"slug":10,"author_name_first_letter":7,"article_count":8,"image_url":9},{},[160,163,166,169,172],{"id":161,"tag":162},2053818,{"id":13,"tag_name":14},{"id":164,"tag":165},2053817,{"id":16,"tag_name":17},{"id":167,"tag":168},2053819,{"id":68,"tag_name":69},{"id":170,"tag":171},2053820,{"id":20,"tag_name":21},{"id":173,"tag":174},2053816,{"id":23,"tag_name":24},{"id":176,"quote_text":177,"author_id":5,"source_id":54,"has_image":55,"author":178,"source":179,"quote_tag":180,"commentary":9},345039,"When he spoke of love, it was in the manner of someone who can recite a phrase in a foreign language but has no idea what it means. He only knows that it sounds pretty.",{"id":5,"author_name":6,"slug":10,"author_name_first_letter":7,"article_count":8,"image_url":9},{},[181,184,187,190],{"id":182,"tag":183},2053561,{"id":13,"tag_name":14},{"id":185,"tag":186},2053560,{"id":16,"tag_name":17},{"id":188,"tag":189},2053562,{"id":20,"tag_name":21},{"id":191,"tag":192},2053558,{"id":23,"tag_name":24},{"id":194,"quote_text":195,"author_id":5,"source_id":54,"has_image":55,"author":196,"source":197,"quote_tag":198,"commentary":9},345030,"It was his experience that life worked under the same guidelines as a capitalistic society. In order to get what you wanted, it was usually necessary to give up something in return. Sometimes gaining what you defined as everything meant losing what you most needed.",{"id":5,"author_name":6,"slug":10,"author_name_first_letter":7,"article_count":8,"image_url":9},{},[199,202,205,208],{"id":200,"tag":201},2053510,{"id":13,"tag_name":14},{"id":203,"tag":204},2053509,{"id":16,"tag_name":17},{"id":206,"tag":207},2053511,{"id":20,"tag_name":21},{"id":209,"tag":210},2053508,{"id":23,"tag_name":24},{"id":212,"quote_text":213,"author_id":5,"source_id":54,"has_image":55,"author":214,"source":215,"quote_tag":216,"commentary":229},345022,"Was love ever easy for anyone? If less complicated, would this make it less appreciated? Perhaps love was difficult for good reason. Perhaps everything on God’s green earth was the result of a flawless plan, even that which seemed most muddled.",{"id":5,"author_name":6,"slug":10,"author_name_first_letter":7,"article_count":8,"image_url":9},{},[217,220,223,226],{"id":218,"tag":219},2053485,{"id":13,"tag_name":14},{"id":221,"tag":222},2053484,{"id":16,"tag_name":17},{"id":224,"tag":225},2053486,{"id":20,"tag_name":21},{"id":227,"tag":228},2053482,{"id":23,"tag_name":24},"**The Backstory**\n\nThis poignant reflection is attributed to Roy L. Pickering Jr., an American author and philosopher known for his insightful writings on love, spirituality, and the human condition. While I couldn't pinpoint a specific source or date for this quote, it aligns with Pickering's philosophical outlook during the mid-20th century, a time of great social change and introspection in the United States.\n\n**The Hidden Insight**\n\nWhat underlies this seemingly straightforward sentiment is a profound paradox: that the difficulty we experience in love might be an inherent aspect of its value. The speaker suggests that if love were easy or uncomplicated, it would lose its significance, implying that our struggles and imperfections are integral to the beauty of human connection.\n\n**How to Use This**\n\nTo apply this mindset today, recognize that the challenges you face in your personal or professional relationships might be an essential part of what makes them meaningful. Instead of striving for effortless harmony, cultivate a deeper appreciation for the complexities and imperfections that arise from genuine human interaction.",{"id":231,"quote_text":232,"author_id":5,"source_id":54,"has_image":55,"author":233,"source":234,"quote_tag":235,"commentary":9},275146,"Was happiness (which was perhaps achieved not by getting what you wanted, but rather, by obtaining what you didn’t know you wished for until it was in hand) a hologram that would continually change appearance with the slightest shift of perspective? Or maybe happiness by definition was a temporary state of being recognizable only in hindsight. It was impossible to catch what always managed to be overrun and end up in the rear view mirror.",{"id":5,"author_name":6,"slug":10,"author_name_first_letter":7,"article_count":8,"image_url":9},{},[236,239,242,245,248,251,254,257,260,263,266],{"id":237,"tag":238},1692210,{"id":13,"tag_name":14},{"id":240,"tag":241},1692208,{"id":16,"tag_name":17},{"id":243,"tag":244},1692215,{"id":20,"tag_name":21},{"id":246,"tag":247},1692214,{"id":27,"tag_name":28},{"id":249,"tag":250},1692212,{"id":31,"tag_name":32},{"id":252,"tag":253},1692207,{"id":34,"tag_name":35},{"id":255,"tag":256},1692206,{"id":23,"tag_name":24},{"id":258,"tag":259},1692219,{"id":37,"tag_name":38},{"id":261,"tag":262},1692213,{"id":43,"tag_name":44},{"id":264,"tag":265},1692209,{"id":40,"tag_name":41},{"id":267,"tag":268},1692216,{"id":47,"tag_name":48},{"currentPage":270,"totalPages":271,"totalItems":8,"itemsPerPage":272},1,3,10]