Stephen Chbosky; extraordinary author and film-maker of one of my favorite movies and books, Perks Of Being A Wallflower, has influenced my perception of life experiences in many ways. The drinking, drugs, and sexuality can have any teenager to adult hooked on this story from beginning to end. For myself, I find a connection and comparison to one of the main characters; Charlie, and I feel that is why I adore this book so much. It speaks to me in several ways, especially through the characteristic of being a wallflower which, according to Chbosky, is a person who sees things and keeps quiet about them because they understand. Lately I've felt like this and witnessed many people who have, so for all the Wallflowers and Chbosky fans out there, these quotes are for you...

1. “We accept the love we think we deserve.”
― Stephen Chbosky, The Perks Of Being A Wallflower

2. “So, this is my life. And I want you to know that I am both happy and sad and I'm still trying to figure out how that could be.”
― Stephen Chbosky, The Perks Of Being A Wallflower

3. “So, I guess we are who we are for a lot of reasons. And maybe we'll never know most of them. But even if we don't have the power to choose where we come from, we can still choose where we go from there. We can still do things. And we can try to feel okay about them.”
― Stephen Chbosky, The Perks Of Being A Wallflower

4. “It's strange because sometimes, I read a book, and I think I am the people in the book.”
― Stephen Chbosky, The Perks Of Being A Wallflower

5. “I don’t know if you’ve ever felt like that. That you wanted to sleep for a thousand years. Or just not exist. Or just not be aware that you do exist. Or something like that. I think wanting that is very morbid, but I want it when I get like this. That’s why I’m trying not to think. I just want it all to stop spinning.”
― Stephen Chbosky, The Perks Of Being A Wallflower

6. “And I thought about how many people have loved those songs. And how many people got through a lot of bad times because of those songs. And how many people enjoyed good times with those songs. And how much those songs really mean. I think it would be great to have written one of those songs. I bet if I wrote one of them, I would be very proud. I hope the people who wrote those songs are happy. I hope they feel it's enough. I really do because they've made me happy. And I'm only one person.”
― Stephen Chbosky, The Perks Of Being A Wallflower

7. “It's much easier to not know things sometimes. Things change and friends leave. And life doesn't stop for anybody. I wanted to laugh. Or maybe get mad. Or maybe shrug at how strange everybody was, especially me. I think the idea is that every person has to live for his or her own life and than make the choice to share it with other people. You can't just sit their and put everybody's lives ahead of yours and think that counts as love. You just can't. You have to do things. I'm going to do what I want to do. I'm going to be who I really am. And I'm going to figure out what that is. And we could all sit around and wonder and feel bad about each other and blame a lot of people for what they did or didn't do or what they didn't know. I don't know. I guess there could always be someone to blame. It's just different. Maybe it's good to put things in perspective, but sometimes, I think that the only perspective is to really be there. Because it's okay to feel things. I was really there. And that was enough to make me feel infinite. I feel infinite.”
― Stephen Chbosky, The Perks Of Being A Wallflower

8. "I just need to know that someone out there listens and understands and doesn't try to sleep with someone even if they could have. I need to know these people exist.”
― Stephen Chbosky, The Perks Of Being A Wallflower

9. "If you care about somebody, you should want them to be happy. Even if you wind up being left out.”
― Stephen Chbosky, The Perks Of Being A Wallflower

10. “I just don't want you to worry about me, or think you've met me, or waste your time anymore.”
― Stephen Chbosky, The Perks Of Being A Wallflower

11. “I don’t know if I will have the time to write any more letters, because I might be too busy trying to participate. So, if this does end up being the last letter, I just want you to know that I was in a bad place before I started high school, and you helped me. Even if you didn’t know what I was talking about, or know someone who’s gone through it, you made me not feel alone. Because I know there are people who say all these things don’t happen. And there are people who forget what it’s like to be sixteen when they turn seventeen. I know these will all be stories some day, and our pictures will become old photographs. We all become somebody’s mom or dad. But right now, these moments are not stories. This is happening. I am here, and I am looking at her. And she is so beautiful. I can see it. This one moment when you know you’re not a sad story. You are alive. And you stand up and see the lights on the buildings and everything that makes you wonder. And you’re listening to that song, and that drive with the people who you love most in this world. And in this moment, I swear, we are infinite.”
― Stephen Chbosky, The Perks Of Being A Wallflower

12. “It's like when my doctor told me the story of these two brothers whose dad was a bad alcoholic. One brother grew up to be a successful carpenter and never drank. The other brother ended up being a drinker as bad as his dad was. When they asked the first brother why he didn't drink, he said that after he saw what it did to his father, he could never bring himself to even try it. When they asked the other brother, he said that he guessed he learned how to drink on his father's knee. So, I guess we are who we are for a lot of reasons. And maybe we'll never know most of them. But even if we don't have the power to choose where we come from, we can still choose where we go from there. We can still do things. And we can try to feel okay about them.”
― Stephen Chbosky, The Perks Of Being A Wallflower

13. “You know . . . a lot of kids at school hate their parents. Some of them got hit. And some of them got caught in the middle of wrong lives. Some of them were trophies for their parents to show the neighbors like ribbons or gold stars. And some of them just wanted to drink in peace.”
― Stephen Chbosky, The Perks Of Being A Wallflower

14. "I'm just thinking too fast-- much too fast.”
― Stephen Chbosky, The Perks Of Being A Wallflower

15. “Things change, friends leave. And life doesn't stop for anybody.”
― Stephen Chbosky, The Perks Of Being A Wallflower