Anne Shirley on Faith, Fashion, and Fall

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I had a stack of books to dive into this summer, and I’ve made my way through a few of them, although I was sidetracked by a certain TV series on Netflix that has taken away from my reading time. (Excuse me as I hang my head in embarrassment).

My favorite read so far is actually a reread of my old worn copy of Anne of Green Gables.  I don’t remember the last time I read it, but I feel like the words came alive in a new way this time.  Maybe it’s because I’m working on improving my own language and writing skills, but I found myself dog-earing pages and smiling at the words that came tumbling out of Anne’s mouth.

Here are a few of my favorite lines from the book:

Anne Shirley on Faith, Fashion, and Fall

On character:

She was sitting there waiting for something or somebody and, since sitting and waiting was the only thing to do just then, she sat and waited with all her might and main.

On faith:

Why must people kneel down to pray?  If I really wanted to pray I’ll tell you what I’d do.  I’d go out into a great big field all alone or into the deep, deep woods, and I’d look up into the sky–up–up–up—into that lovely blue sky that looks as if there was no end to its blueness.  And then I’d just feel a prayer.

On fashion:

I’d rather look ridiculous when everybody else does than plain and sensible all by myself.

On fall:

I’m so glad I live in a world where there are Octobers.

On kindreds:

Kindred spirits are not so scarce as I used to think.  It’s splendid to find out there are so many of them in the world.

On personalities:

There’s such a lot of different Annes in me.  I sometimes think that is why I’m such a troublesome person.  If I was just the one Anne it would be ever so much more comfortable, but then it wouldn’t be half so interesting.

On conscience:

It’s always wrong to do anything you can’t tell the minister’s wife.  It’s as good as an extra conscience to have a minister’s wife for your friend.

On ambition:

Oh, it’s delightful to have ambitions.  I’m so glad I have such a lot.  And there never seems to be any end to them–that’s the best of it.  Just as soon as you attain to one ambition you see another one glittering higher up still.  It does make life so interesting.

And just because I love the language:

Excitement hung around Anne like a garment, shone in her eyes, kindled in every feature.  She had come dancing up the lane, like a wind-blown sprite, through the mellow sunshine and lazy shadows of the August evening.

"I'm so glad I live in a world where there are Octobers." inspiredrd.com

I can’t wait until Leila is old enough to read Anne for the first time.

 

Do you ever reread books?  What are some of your old favorites?  

 

  • Jesse @ Humble Seed July 28, 2013 at 6:24 pm

    Oh my goodness – Anne of Green Gables is truly one of my all time favorites. I’m 30 years old – and I still watch the movie at least once a year! Thanks for the reminder that the book is full of even more beautiful language – I can’t wait to read it again when my daughter’s old enough. 🙂

  • Emily W July 28, 2013 at 8:00 pm

    My grandma introduced me to Anne Shirley when I was very young. We used to quote the following line to each other, even if it is from the movie and possibly not the book. The book is one of my favorites too.

    Anne Shirley: Don’t you ever imagine things differently from what they are?
    Marilla Cuthbert: No.
    Anne Shirley: Oh Marilla, how much you miss!

    • inspiredrd July 30, 2013 at 5:17 pm

      Yes, I love this one!

  • Mandy July 29, 2013 at 4:27 am

    Love this! Believe it or not, my parents live 20mins from Green Gables on PEI…we have 2 more days here then it’s back to Phoenix. It will be nice to be back in my own bed but my heart truly lives here. Check out my Instagram for pictures all over the island. It’s been a glorious month!!

    • inspiredrd July 30, 2013 at 5:17 pm

      Oh my goodness, I can’t wait to check out your pictures. What is your IG username?

  • Diana Leah Wilson July 29, 2013 at 8:02 am

    Hold your head high and be proud of your Netflix addition. And I recommend Gossip Girl too if you haven’t already seen it 🙂

    • inspiredrd July 30, 2013 at 5:16 pm

      Thanks for the support!

  • Regina Barker July 29, 2013 at 12:33 pm

    This is awesome. I love love LOVE Anne of green gables and watched it every year at christmas growing up. Never gets old! Love how your cited lines above capture her quirkiness and great character.

  • Kate @ Indulgent Wellness July 31, 2013 at 11:07 am

    My sister-in-law and I were just talking about AofGG a couple weeks ago! We sat around the pool reminiscing about characters and plot lines and complaining that, although both of our middle names are Ann, it isn’t spelled with an “e”. Parents are still unforgiven for that! 🙂

    I found The Secret Garden among a list of free Kindle downloads a couple years ago and now I’ve re-read it a couple times since adding it to my “bookshelf”. I always wished to find a place that was so secret!

  • Stephanie August 1, 2013 at 10:02 pm

    “Anne of Green Gables” is such a delightful and truth-filled series. I plan to read it the girls soon…we’re making our way through “The Chronicles of Narnia” now. 🙂

  • Kate August 4, 2013 at 8:54 am

    love anne! also, no shame in pll 🙂

    • inspiredrd August 4, 2013 at 9:07 am

      Thanks my kindred friend 🙂

  • Marcela October 1, 2015 at 2:43 pm

    I love Anne of Green Gables! I was first introduced to L.M. Montgomery at the age of 11, and now at 44 I still read all of her books. The Anne books are definitely my favorites, but I love the Emily of New Moon books as well….and Jane of Lantern Hill is just lovely! Its so nice to see so many others who love Anne as much as I do. <3