Every day I hold my breath until I see her. Sometimes in class, sometimes in the hallway. I can't start breathing until I see her smile at me. She always does, but the next day I'm always afraid she won't. At lunch I'm afraid she'll smile more at BT than at me. I'm afraid she'll look at him in some way that she doesn't look at me. I'm afraid that when I go to bed at night I'll still be wondering. I'm always afraid. Is that what love is - fear?
Jerry SpinelliLive today. Not yesterday. Not tomorrow. Just today. Inhabit your moments. Donโt rent them out to tomorrow. Do you know what youโre doing when you spend a moment wondering how things are going to turn out with Perry? Youโre cheating yourself out of today. Today is calling to you, trying to get your attention, but youโre stuck on tomorrow, and today trickles away like water down a drain. You wake up the next morning and that today you wasted is gone forever. Itโs now yesterday. Some of those moments may have had wonderful things in store for you , but now youโll never know.
Jerry SpinelliStargirl began to improvise. She flung her arms to a make-believe crowd like a celebrity on parade. She waggled her fingers at the stars. She churned her fists like an egg-beater. Every action echoed down the line behind her. The three hops of the bunny became three struts of a vaudeville vamp. Then a penguin waddle. Then tippy-toed priss. Every new move brought new laughter from the line.
Jerry SpinelliWho doesn't love a compliment? But every compliment comes with a warning: BewareโDo Not Overuse. Go ahead, sniff your compliment. Take a little sip. But don't chew, don't swallow. If you do, you risk abandoning the good work that inspired the compliment in the first place. If that happens, maybe it was the compliment and not the job well done that you were aiming for all along.
Jerry SpinelliThroughout the day, Stargirl had been dropping money. She was the Johnny Appleseed of loose change: a penny here, a nickel there. Tossed to the sidewalk, laid on a shelf or bench. Even quarters. "I hate change," she said. "It's so . . . jangly." "Do you realize how much you must throw away in a year?" I said. "Did you ever see a little kid's face when he spots a penny on a sidewalk?"
Jerry Spinelli