James Mercer Quotes

You just don't understand humility until you have children and get divorced.

Being a parent has taught me a lot of things already, you know, though it's only been a year and half, and has made me address parts of myself that I would otherwise live in comfortable denial of, or you know and - you know, for instance, my self-loathing.

Having a child makes you strong and gives you chutzpah. It relaxed my attitude to the job; my center of focus shifted, which I think is very helpful, because even if you're not a very indulgent actor you spend a lot of time thinking about yourself. I don't think that is particularly healthy.

I don't think you automatically become an enlightened person because you are a daddy. But they will change you, of course - their understanding of you puts you in a different place.

There are things I can't force. I must adjust. There are times when the greatest change needed is a change of my viewpoint.

Parenthood is so wild in its ability to put a mirror directly in your face and force you to look at yourself long and hard. What a challenge this is, but also what an exhilarating gift.

You learn you have to accept the way things are, and the sooner you accept them, the sooner you become at peace with them, and then the things start to get better.

Some people can accept the changes in life in a mature way but for most others, it is never easy.

Life experiences inherently change you as a writer. My sense of fury calmed down when I had children and found a loving partner.

Learning to live with the given is the great humbling educational process of life.

Changing your attitude from self-centerdness to understanding requires desire and commitment to always try to see things from the other persons point of view.

The twists and turns of your life can be so unexpected, and that's a good thing to learn.

I think being a parent is the most challenging thing you do. That's why we're here. It's at the heart of what it is to be a human being. It's the ultimate experience because it questions everything about who you are. But it's difficult.

Cancer has given me a dose of humility. I'm much more empathetic. It's a club I would rather not have joined, but it is a club.

What makes most of us who we are most of all is not our minds and not our bodies and not what happens to us, but how we respond to what happens to us.

I started off as many fathers do. I enjoyed the good bits, but I was wary of the responsibility. But now I love being a dad.

You cannot tailor-make the situations in life but you can tailor-make the attitudes to fit those situations.

When you overcome a profound loss, or there's some catalyst in your life that shifts everything, if you're able to take it in stride and heal, it can make for much more three-dimensional and empathetic people.

Learn not only to find what you like, learn to like what you find.

You'll be a good parent when you're ready to no longer be selfish. Until I was about 35, it was all about me. I look back and I'm astonished at how I lived my life - it was totally self-involved.

My advice would be not to write until after 35. You need some experience, and for life to knock you about a bit. Growing up is so hard you probably won't have much emotion to spare anyway.

Fatherhood didn't change me in the beginning very much.

I had years of partying, and I was kind of surprised and happy I survived it all. Now, being a parent, I look back on it thinking, Oh God, the things you did!

When something really extreme happens, you have to find a way to embrace that and include it in how you think about the character. Sometimes it's not easy.

I'm a much better mother at 46... than if I were like, 21 or 25.