“Why do you waste all of your strength fighting your true nature?”

THE PHOENIX — FALL OUT BOY

BOOKS READ IN 2020: Legend by Marie Lu

— without emotion, what’s the point of being human?

THE LAST OF THE REAL ONES - FALL OUT BOY

june claremont-diaz: the sanctified idea of southernness at it’s best

don’t feel bad, i’m usually about to die.

happy birthday, ania (@jacksonperseus)!

@grishasworld mission 3: trick or treat – typography

“her father had liked to recite this when she was training on the wire or the swings. be decisive, he’d say. you have to know where you want to go before you get there.”

what more do you want? 

everything

for @gerralt in katie’s happiness circle!

Chayi (The Art of Drinking Tea)

Making tea is often a tradition that denotes Respect and appreciation for things such as family And marriage. Washing the teacup with boiled water Cleanses your heart and mind, dissipating the yin Collected from your sins. Tea leaves are passed Around to be examined and admired—a picture Of grace. Prosperity and happiness Are meant to be delivered by flipping The tea within two cups, a flow of exchange Between guests that is soon discarded as well. Greed  And jealousy is washed away with the impure water until You are filled with only the richness of yang. The tea you are finally able to drink is signified By something I no longer am sure I understand, Painted by lost cultural significance only My grandparents retain. You echo these motions In an attempt to pass down rituals that matter, And yet none of this feels important to me. I feel as if I grew up to be those tea leaves, Fragrant smells promising the sweetness Of tea, but instead, I am the flavorless water Cast aside because who I am doesn’t Fit into the rigidness of the tradition that Tell me to conform my values to Those of this society.

Making tea is also a tradition that means Apologies—regret and submission for Failures of the past. I pour my tea out To wash away the bad qi of the choices I have made, wishing you fortune And joy. (Even if I am not the daughter you wanted.) I reboil the water at the right temperature To ensure the tea is not bitter. My cup brims With my sorrow and my love, yet (I am still not sorry for who I am.)

alexclaremontdlaz >> alexclaremontdiaz

ik its a small diff but like i cannot explain in words how happy it makes me to have this url so thank u @/epiphanies

@asianlitnet event 05: themes and motifs — yumeko’s i’m not afraid in each book of shadow of the fox trilogy

“I trust you.” The words were a whisper into my soul. The tips of her thumbs brushed my cheek, unbearably tender, and I closed my eyes against the softness.”

@asianlitnet event 05: themes and motifs — rites of empire of sand by tasha suri

The Rite of Dreaming was a rite for worship and joy, for history and family, but most of all, it was a rite for dancing with clan.

@grishasworld​ mission 7: alternate covers -- the grisha trilogy

“They had an ordinary life, full of ordinary things—if love can ever be called that.”

“That's what mortal means," I say with a sigh that I don't have to fake. "We die. Think of us like shooting stars, brief but bright.”

@folkoftheair asked: tid or tfota?

@asianlitnet event 04: pairings — day and june

“Even if we don't know where we'll go in the future, perhaps our lives were always meant to collide again and again. Perhaps we are forever meant to be each other's catalysts.”

@asianlitnet event 01: favorite book — shadow of the fox by julie kagawa

“Master Isao taught kindness and patience in all things, especially when one was injured,” I went on. “He said that caring for the spirit was just as important as caring for the body.” Looking into Tatsumi’s blank, emotionless face, I had a sudden, heartbreaking insight. “No one has ever showed you any kindness before, have they?”