James Baldwin Quotes

You cannot change everything you face and you cannot also change anything without facing it.

That's reality, it's accessibility. People are used to seeing me like that for the last year, I think, ... To avoid it is avoidance. We're not going to avoid things.

We change our behavior when the pain of staying the same becomes greater than the pain of changing. Consequences give us the pain that motivates us to change.

We cannot change anything unless we accept it.

Life will not always change, so we must be willing to change.

You can never change what you don't confront and transform what you avoid.

You can't stop the waves, but you can learn to surf.

People grow. It's okay to grow. Some people find that difficult to grasp.

We have to learn to adapt to people and changes. Change is good.

The first step toward change is awareness. The second step is acceptance.

God grant me the serenity to accept the things I cannot change; the courage to change the things I can; and the wisdom to know the difference.

Just because we cannot see clearly the end of the road, that is no reason for not setting out on the essential journey. On the contrary, great change dominates the world, and unless we move with change we will become its victims.

Change is inevitable. Growth is optional.

What you're supposed to do when you don't like a thing is change it. If you can't change it, change the way you think about it. Don't complain.

If we're growing, we're always going to be out of our comfort zone.

Life moves on, whether we act as cowards or heroes. Life has no other discipline to impose, if we would but realize it, than to accept life unquestioningly. Everything we shut our eyes to, everything we run away from, everything we deny, denigrate or despise, serves to defeat us in the end. What seems nasty, painful, evil, can become a source of beauty, joy, and strength, if faced with an open mind. Every moment is a golden one for him who has the vision to recognize it as such

All problems become smaller if you don't dodge them, but confront them. Touch a thistle timidly, and it pricks you; grasp it boldly, and its spines crumble.

It's harder to build than destroy. To build is to engage and change. In jazz, we call progressing harmonies changes. Changes are like obstacles on a speed course. They demand your attention and require you to be present. They are coming...they are here..... and then they are gone. It's how life comes. Each moment is a procession from the future into the past and the sweet spot is always the present. Live in that sweet spot. Be present.

Change isn't always comfortable, but it is a fact of life.

I want to know if you are prepared to live in the world with its harsh need to change you. If you can look back with firm eyes saying this is where I stand.

Life can either be accepted or changed. If it is not accepted, it must be changed. If it cannot be changed, then it must be accepted.

No matter what is going on around or within you, everything at some point must change. It's harder to accept when things are great - and a source of strength when change is what you need. Either way, it reminds me to try my best to be fully present in every moment.

When we least expect it, life sets us a challenge to test our courage and willingness to change; at such a moment, there is no point in pretending that nothing has happened or in saying that we are not yet ready. The challenge will not wait. Life does not look back. A week is more than enough time for us to decide whether or not to accept our destiny.

Acceptance is the magic that makes change possible. It is not forever, it is for the present moment