15 Inspirational Quotes from One Tree Hill

Thursday, January 16, 2014

When I was younger I remember keeping journals full of my favourite quotes from books, movies and TV shows. Eventually I got a laptop, and my handwritten journals were soon replaced by electronic file folders and documents. Sure, it's convenient to be able to pin over 20 of your favourite quotes in mere minutes, but there's something special about having a book to carry them around in. Ever since I saw "A Walk to Remember," I always pictured myself making a book full of quotes like Mandy Moore's character did. Maybe it would be to pass along to someone special who I felt needed the words more than I did. Maybe it would just be for myself. The point would be to have something to flip open that was guaranteed to make me laugh or feel inspired on days when I was feeling down or uneasy. With so many parts of our world becoming digital, it's nice to have some things kept old fashioned. At my last apartment I had quotes written on my glass mirrors, and painted onto my desk. Most of those quotes were from the show One Tree Hill. The quotes and voiceovers were some of the main reasons I fell in love with the series. So realistic and full of motivation, if you were to hear them out of context you wouldn't think most of them came from a teen drama series. A couple months ago I remember finding a post on Thought Catalog on some of the best quotes from One Tree Hill. Though the post contained some of the quotes I knew and love, I was shocked to find many of my favourite voiceovers from the show missing from the list. Over half of the quotes I've included weren't incorporated to the post I found on Thought Catalog, so I thought it was about time I made my own. I hope these words bring you the same inspiration and motivation that they did to me.


1.
"Take a look at yourself in the mirror, who do you see looking back? Is it the person you wanna be? Or is there someone else you were meant to be? The person you should have been, but fell short of. Is someone telling you you can't, or you wont? Because you can. Believe that love is out there. Believe that dreams come true every day, because they do. Sometimes happieness doesn't come from money, or fame, or power. Sometimes happiness comes from good friends and family, and from the quiet nobility of leading a good life. Believe that dreams come true everyday, because they do. Believe that dreams come true everyday, because they do. So take a look in that mirror and remind yourself to be happy, because you deserve to be. Believe that. And believe that dreams come true everyday, because they do."

2.
"Make a wish and place it in your heart. Anything you want, everything you want. Do you have it? Good. Now believe it can come true. You never know where the next miracle is going to come from. The next smile, the next wish come true. But if you believe that it's right around the corner, and you open up your heart and mind to the possibility of it, to the certainty of it, you just might get the thing you're wishing for. The world is full of magic. You just have to believe in it. So make your wish. Do you have it? Good. Now believe in it, with all of your heart."

3.
"George Bernard Shaw once wrote: "There are two tragedies in life. One is to lose your heart's desire. The other is to gain it." Clearly, Shaw had his heart broken once or twice.
As far as I'm concerned, Shaw was a punk. Cause you know what? Tragedies happen. What are you gonna do, give up? Quit? No. I realize now that when your heart breaks, you got to fight like hell to make sure your still alive. Because you are. And that pain you feel? That's life. The confusion and fear? That's there to remind you, that somewhere out there is something better, and that something is worth fighting for.
This year, I got everything I wanted and everything I wished for. But in a way, I lost even more.
Shaw was right. As we strain to grasp the things we desire, the things we think will make our lives better: money, popularity, fame... we ignore what truly matters, the simple things, like friendship, family, love. The things we probably already had.
So Mr. Shaw thinks that getting your heart's desire is a tragedy? I say he's wrong. I mean, clearly Shaw never kissed Erica Marsh.
Yes, losing your heart's desire is tragic. But gaining your heart's desire? That's all you can hope for. This year I wished for love... to immerse myself in someone else and to wake a heart long afraid to feel. My wish was granted. And if having that is tragic, then give me tragedy. Because I wouldn't give it back for the world."


4.
"And Hansel said to Gretal: Let us drop these bread crumbs, so that together we find our way home, because losing our way would be the most cruel of things." This year I lost my way. And losing your way on a journey is unfortunate. But losing your reason for the journey... is a fate more cruel. The journey lasted eight months. Sometimes I traveled alone. Sometimes there were others who took the wheel, and took my heart. But when the destination was reached, it wasn't me who'd arrived. It wasn't me at all. And once you lose yourself, you have two choices. Find the person you used to be, or lose that person completely. Because sometimes, you have to step outside of the person you've been, and remember the person you were meant to be. The person you wanted to be. The person you are."

5.
"At this moment, there are 6,470,818,671 people in the world. Some are running scared. Some are coming home. Some tell lies to make it through the day. Others are just now facing the truth. Some are evil men, that war with good. And some are good, struggling with evil. 6 billion people in the world. 6 billion souls. And sometimes, all you need is one."


6.
"Don't be afraid, Peyton. Every song has a coda, a final movement. Whether it fades out or crashes away, every song ends. Is that any reason not to enjoy the music?"

7.
"Albert Camus once wrote "Blessed are the hearts that can bend; they shall never be broken." But I wonder if there's no breaking then there's no healing, and if there's no healing then there's no learning. And if there's no learning then there's no struggle. But struggle is a part of life. So must all hearts be broken?"

8.
(I previously posted this quote on my post "embrace the messy bits")
"People get lost when they think of happiness as a destination. We're always thinking that some day we'll be happy. We will get that car or that job or that person in our lives that will fix everything. But happiness is a mood. And it's a condition not a destination. It's like being tired or hungry. It's not permanent. It comes and goes and that's okay. And I feel like if people thought of it that way, they'd find happiness more often."


9.
"Do not let your fire go out, spark by irreplaceable spark in the hopeless swaps of the not-quite, the not-yet, and the not-at-all. Do not let the hero in your soul perish in lonely frustration for the life you deserved and have never been able to reach. The world you desire can be won. It exists.. it is real.. it is possible.. it's yours."

10.
"Oliver Wendell Holmes once said: Many people die with their music still in them. Too often it is because they are always getting ready to live. Before they know it...time runs out."

11.
"Most of our lives are a series of images. They pass us by like towns on a highway. But sometimes a moment stuns us as it happens. And we know that this instant is more than a fleeting image. We know that this moment, every part of it, will live on forever.

12.
"You ever look at a picture of yourself and see a stranger in the background? It makes you wonder how many strangers have pictures of you. How many moments of other people's lives have we been in? Were we a part of someone's life when their dream came true? Or were we there when their dreams died? Did we keep trying to get in, as if we were somehow destined to be there? Or did the shock take us by surprise? Just think, you'd be a big part of someone else's life... and not even know it."

13.
"My mama told me that sometimes people have to cry out all their tears to make room for a heart full of smiles."

14.
"It's hard when you miss people. But, you know, if you miss them it means you were lucky. It means you had someone special in your life, someone worth missing."

15.
"It's been fifty years, fifty long years since I've done this. Looking back on what I said all those years ago, all the hopes and dreams I had, I've come to the conclusion that if having things turn out the way you wanted them to is a measure of a successful life, then some would say I'm a failure. The important thing is not to be bitter over life's disappointments. Learn to let go of the past. And recognize that every day won't be sunny, and when you find yourself lost in the darkness and despair, remember it's only in the black of night you see the stars. And those stars will lead you back home. So don't be afraid to make mistakes, to stumble and fall, cause most of the time, the greatest rewards come from doing the things that scare you the most. Maybe you'll get everything you wish for. Maybe you'll get more than you ever could have imagined. Who knows where life will take you. The road is long and in the end, the journey is the destination."

With love,
Ciara


new year, new lessons, new beginnings

Thursday, January 2, 2014

When I look back at 2013, I realize just how far I've come this past year. A new school, a new apartment, new friends (while still keeping the old ones of course) - so many changes in my life that have reminded me of the life I want, as well as the kind of life I don't want. I didn't make any New Year's resolutions this year, aside from making it a point to live a life that I'm both happy and proud of. Almost six months ago I started this blog. At the time, even I didn't know if it would be a short lived phase, or something that I would continue for years to come. I can now confidently say that I know it's the latter. Even if I go weeks without writing, this blog has been my escape from the outside world. It's taught me about myself, my likes and interests, and what's on my mind even when I can't seem to figure it out for myself. It's helped me figure out what I want to do. It's helped me continue to dream. For everyone who has been reading and following - I'm so thankful for your support and overjoyed to have brought even the slightest bit of happiness into your days. I've learned a lot this year, but here are a few highlights I thought I'd share with the world:

I've learned that it's important to take risks and make mistakes. If things don't turn out the way you want them to, know that if nothing else, there is always a lesson to be learned from negative experiences.

I've learned that all it takes to be the best version of myself is focus, passion and a clear conscience (an extra shot of espresso in my Starbucks doesn't hurt either.)

I've learned that the more people you meet, the more you grow and the more you learn about the world. You can learn something from every person you cross paths with. Never pass up an opportunity to get to know someone new.
I've learned that as much as I like going out, nothing beats a night in with good friends, good food, and good conversation.


I've learned to stand my ground when necessary and stand up for what I believe in.

I've learned that there are people who will let you down...

I've also learned that there are twice as many people willing to pick you back up.

I've learned to be happy with the little things, but to never stop believing in the big things.


I've learned that cuddling is the best medicine out there.

I've learned that it's ok not to know where you're going next.

I've learned that I am so, incredibly lucky to be living the life that I do. And to everyone who has contributed to it in any way, I sincerely thank you.

I'll leave you with a sweet, little song from one of my favourite shows, Nashville, that will hopefully make you reflect on your own life and how good you have it.

Sitting here tonight, by the fire light

It reminds me I already have more than I should.
I don't need fame, no one to know my name.
At the end of the day, Lord I pray
I have a life that's good.



Two arms around me
Heaven to ground me
and a family that always calls me home.
Four wheels to get there.
Enough love to share and a
sweet, sweet, sweet song.
At the end of the day, Lord I pray
I have a life that's good.



Sometimes I'm hard on me,
when dreams don't come easy
I wanna look back and say I did all that I could.
At the end of the day, Lord I pray
I have a life that's good.



Two arms around me
Heaven to ground me
and a family that always calls me home.
Four wheels to get there.
Enough love to share and a
sweet, sweet, sweet song.
At the end of the day, Lord I pray
I have a life that's good.



At the end of the day, Lord I pray
I have a life that's good.

With love,
Ciara <3