In all honesty, my diary is a horror show. Not a good one like Silence of the lambs, more like Sharknado 6. (There are six of these? I’m not much of a horror film enthusiast, and I have to admit that the search for a bad horror movie sent me on an entertaining internet spiral.) Paging through it, you’ll find no logic applied, random bits of info scribbled at odd places, coffee and red wine stains, several water-damaged sections, and scratches resembling that of a five-year-old learning to write. Yet, it leaves you with complete satisfaction (as long as you pretend not to see the empty pages).

Although I love my diary’s ability to remind me to do things (if I remember to pen it down) or scratching out tasks and dates completed, my favourite part is the daily quotes at the bottom of each page. It’s like a yearly advent calendar without the calories, just a small gift every day. So, without further ado, here are 24 of my favourite quotes from my 2021 diary in no particular order.

“We accept the love we think we deserve.” ― Stephen Chbosky, The Perks of Being a Wallflower

“Write it on your heart that every day is the best day in the year.” — Ralph Waldo Emerson

“Although no man can go back and make a brand new start, anyone can start from now and make a brand new end.” — Carl Bard

“Do your little bit of good where you are; it’s those little bits of good put together that overwhelm the world.” — Desmond Tutu

“You have to decide what your highest priorities are and have the courage—pleasantly, smilingly, non-apologetically, to say “no” to other things. And the way you do that is by having a bigger “yes” burning inside.” ― Stephen Covey

“Today a new sun rises for me; everything lives, everything is animated, everything seems to speak to me of my passion, everything invites me to cherish it.” — Ninon de L’Enclos

“You will find that it is necessary to let things go; simply for the reason that they are heavy. So let them go, let go of them. I tie no weights to my ankles.” — C. Joybell

“We must not, in trying to think about how we can make a big difference, ignore the small daily differences we can make which, over time, add up to big differences that we often cannot foresee.” — Marian Wright Edelman

“Don’t ask what the world needs. Ask what makes you come alive, and go do it. Because what the world needs is people who have come alive.” ― Howard Thurman

“The library is inhabited by spirits that come out of the pages at night.” ― Isabel Allende

“What you do makes a difference, and you have to decide what kind of difference you want to make.” ― Jane Goodall

“Lighthouses don’t go running all over an island looking for boats to save; they just stand there shining.” ― Anne Lamott

“There is in this world no such force as the force of a person determined to rise. The human soul cannot be permanently chained.” ― W.E.B. Du Bois

“Most people are mirrors, reflecting the moods and emotions of the times; few are windows, bringing light to bear on the dark corners where troubles fester.” — Sydney J. Harris

“Resentment or grudges do no harm to the person against whom you hold these feelings but every day and every night of your life, they are eating at you.” ― Norman Vincent Peale

“We can do anything as long as we muster the resources we have and believe that we can achieve” — Unknown

“Within you right now is the power to do things you never dreamed possible. This power becomes available to you just as you can change your beliefs.” ― Maxwell Maltz

“Painting is poetry that is seen rather than felt, and poetry is painting that is felt rather than seen.” — Leonardo da Vinci.

“You must remain focused on your journey to greatness” — Les Brown

“On matters of style, swim with the current; on matters of principle, stand like a rock.” — Thomas Jefferson

“There are powers inside of you which, if you could discover and use, would make of you everything you ever dreamed or imagined you could become.” — Orison Swett Marden

“Insight is the awareness that the external world is but a mirror. Whatever you see therein is but a reflection of yourself.” — Baal Shem Tov

“One of the advantages of being disorganized is that one is always having surprising discoveries.” — A. A. Milne, The Complete Tales of Winnie-the-Pooh

“Remember, darkness does not always equate to evil, just as light doesn’t always bring good.” — P.C. Cast

And a bonus one, just for luck:
“Learn to value yourself, which means: fight for your happiness.” — Ayn Rand