Ashley Bryan Quotes

Not enough info makes for a lot of dead cats." "Dead cats?" "You know, 'Curiosity killed the cat.' And I have enough curiosity to start a feline genocide." "Feline genocide?" "Yeah. If you don't explain Apollo, the cat kingdom will crumble. Cats all over the world will suddenly plop down in unmoving masses of fur, their food will dry up in smelly chunks of fish, and when people call, 'Here, kitty kitty kitty,' no cats will come running; they'll just-" Walter suddenly stopped. "What's wrong?" Ashley asked. Walter stared straight ahead. "I just realized . . . if all those things happened, no one would notice the difference." ~Walter~

Ashley tugged on his sleeve. "You're scaring me Walter." "Sorry I guess talking about ghosts is-" "It's not that," she interrupted shaking her head. "You're using logic. That's scaring me." Walters eyebrows knitted. "So much for terms of endearment

Through all my years enslaved, I've listened to ancestral voices echoing through my weariness, giving me strength to withstand injustice, to believe in myself and survive. May our songs and stories keep alive in us the will to grow in learning. The longing to be free!

Revealing aspects of the mystery of being human is life's inexhaustible research. Through the adventures of art, we find the meaning of our lives.

I've walked a long trail, a long trail of years flushed with tears. Tears of remembrance. Years of driven labor have not driven the ancestral thoughts out of me. My memory of teaching— surrounded by children, singing songs of our people, the stories of our history— lives always with me... Song shields our hearts from abuse, draws us together, strengthens our lives.