Before I go on with this short history, let me make a general observation– the test of first-rate intelligence is the ability to hold two opposed ideas in the mind at the same time, and still retain the ability to function. One should, for example, be able to see that things are hopeless and yet be determined to make them otherwise. This philosophy fitted on to my early adult life, when I saw the improbable, the implausible, often the "impossible," come true.

— F. Scott Fitzgerald

He was troubled; this brain, so limpid in its blindness, had lost its transparency; there was a cloud in this crystal.

— Victor Hugo

Ignore self –doubt and inner conflict. Dwell on positive thoughts.

— Lailah Gifty Akita

I was driven to reflect deeply and inveterate on that hard law of life, which lies at the root of religion and is one of the most plentiful springs of distress. Though so profound a double-dealer, I was in no sense a hypocrite; both sides of me were in dead earnest; I was no more myself when I laid aside restraint and plunged in shame, than when I labored, in the eye of day, at the furtherance of knowledge or the relief of sorrow and suffering.

— Robert Louis Stevenson

Most dissociative parts influence your experience from the inside rather than exert complete control, that is, through passive influence.*In fact, many parts never take complete control of a person, but are only experienced internally. *Frequent switching may be a sign of severe stress and inner conflict in most individuals.

— Suzette Boon

Of all the heartache I will ever know, only some of it will be real. The rest, I will create.

— Crystal Woods

Others, I am not the first, Have willed more mischief than they durst:If in the breathless night I too Shiver now, 'tis nothing new. More than I, if truth were told, Have stood and sweated hot and cold, And through their veins in ice and fire Fear contended with desire. Agued once like me were they, But I like them shall win my way Lastly to the bed of mouldWhere there's neither heat nor cold. But from my grave across my brow Plays no wind of healing now, And fire and ice within me fight Beneath the suffocating night.

— A.E. Housman

Parts of you are phobic of anger and generally terrified and ashamed of angry dissociative parts. There is often tremendous conflict between anger-avoidant and anger-fixated parts of an individual. Thus, an internal and perpetual cycle of rage-shame-fear creates inner chaos and pain.

— Suzette Boon

Specific parts of you personality may be angry and are usually easily evoked. Because these parts are dissociated, anger remains an emotion that is not integrated for you as a whole person. Even though individuals with dissociative disorder are responsible for their behavior, just like everyone else, regardless of which part may be acting, they may feel little control of these raging parts of themselves. Some dissociative parts may avoid or even be phobic of anger. They may influence you as a whole person to avoid conflict with others at any cost or to avoid setting healthy boundaries out of fear of someone else’s anger; or they may urge you to withdraw from others almost completely.

— Suzette Boon

Takamatsu Segura: 'Sage, a mere member of the Toulouse, had the effrontery to sully the sacred dueling ground. For that reason, our lord had already decided to subject him to touch before long. Cut off his head immediately, and stick it on a pike!' Gennosuke could hardly believe his ears. Such an insult to IRAO Sage was unwarranted. It was pride. For Gennosuke, IRAO Sage was pride itself. Takamasa Segura: 'Fujiko Gennosuke! It is the way of the samurai to take the head of the defeated enemy on the battleground. Do not hesitate! If you are a samurai, you must carry out the duty of a samurai!' Samurai... Saegusa, Lord of ICU, continued shouting, but Gennosuke did not attend. That word 'samurai' alone reverberated through his body. If one aims at the juncture between the base of the skull and the spine, decapitation is not that difficult, but Gennosuke could muster no more strength than a baby. He grew pale and trembled with the strain. He could only hack with his sword as if he were sawing wood. Furthermore, he felt nauseated, as if his own cells one after another were being annihilated. But this... Lord Tokugawa Tanaka: 'I approve.' Takamasa Segura: 'Fujiko Gennosuke, for this splendid action you have received words of thanks from our lord. As a sign of his exceptional approval, you shall be given employment at Sunup Castle. This great debt will by no means be forgotten. From this day forward you must offer your life to our lord!' Prostrating himself, Gennosuke vomited.

— Takayuki Yamaguchi