"What that one story did, more powerfully than one hundred speeches possibly could, was change the way we saw each other, and then the way we saw ourselves. Through the uncorrupted eyes of a child, she showed us the beautiful complexity of our common humanity, and the importance of striving for justice in our own lives, our communities, and our country."
- President Barack Obama
When I first heard of Harper Lee's recent passing on Friday, I immediately thought back to my freshman year in high school when I read "To Kill A Mockingbird" for the first time.
Like for many others my age, Lee's timeless story about childhood, racial relations and justice in the segregated South was a required reading in English class that actually turned out to be one of my favorite novels—and personally, as an aspiring writer, one of the many great books that have inspired me to become an author myself.
As we mourn the loss of a beloved writer, it's important that we remember and celebrate her timeless words and wise lessons about humanity, justice, tolerance and love.
1. "You never really understand a person until you consider things from his point of view...Until you climb inside of his skin and walk around in it."
2. "I wanted you to see what real courage is, instead of getting the idea that courage is a man with a gun in his hand. It’s when you know you’re licked before you begin, but you begin anyway and see it through no matter what. You rarely win, but sometimes you do.”
3. “The one thing that doesn’t abide by majority rule is a person’s conscience."
4. "You just hold your head high and keep those fists down. No matter what anybody says to you, don't let 'em get your goat. Try fightin' with your head for a change."
5. "Atticus, he was real nice." "Most people are, Scout, when you finally see them."
6. "It’s never an insult to be called what somebody thinks is a bad name. It just shows you how poor that person is, it doesn’t hurt you.”
7. “People generally see what they look for, and hear what they listen for.”
8. “I think there's just one kind of folks. Folks.”
9. "Things are always better in the morning.”
