Words To Live By

One of my favorite Fiction Notice and Note Signposts is the Words of the Wiser. If you haven’t read Notice and Note by Kylene Beers and Robert Probst (both fiction and nonfiction), then you are missing out.

Words of the Wiser:

When you’re reading and a character (probably older and wiser) takes the main character aside and gives serious advice. Usually leads to understanding the theme of the story.

When I think of Words of the Wiser, immediately Albus Dumbledore, Gandalf, and Yoda come to mind. These are the characters that guided the main characters to success.

I have compiled a list (and will continue adding to it) of the best Words of the Wiser. If you come across one that should be included, please comment below!

Harry Potter Series

• “Always use the proper name for things. Fear of a name increases fear of the thing itself.”-Albus Dumbledore, Harry Potter and the Sorcerer’s Stone
• “‘The truth,’ Dumbledore sighed, ‘It is a beautiful and terrible thing, and should therefore be treated with great caution.'”-Albus Dumbledore, Harry Potter and the Sorcerer’s Stone
• “You will find that I will only truly have left this school when none here are loyal to me. You will also find that help will always be given at Hogwarts to those who ask for it.” -Albus Dumbledore, Harry Potter and the Chamber of Secrets
• “Never trust anything that can think for itself if you can’t see where it keeps its brain.” -Arthur Weasley, Harry Potter and the Chamber of Secrets
• “It is our choices, Harry, that show what we truly are, far more than our abilities.” -Albus Dumbledore, Harry Potter and the Chamber of Secrets
• “You think the dead we have loved ever truly leave us? You think that we don’t recall them more clearly than ever in times of great trouble? Your father is alive in you, Harry, and shows himself most plainly when you have need of him.” -Albus Dumbldore, Harry Potter and the Chamber of Secrets
• “If you want to know what a man’s like, take a good look at how he treats his inferiors, not his equals.” -Sirius Black, Harry Potter and the Goblet of Fire
• “Understanding is the first step to acceptance, and only with acceptance can there be recovery.” -Albus Dumbledore, Harry Potter and the Goblet of Fire
• “You fail to recognize that it matters not what someone is born, but what they grow to be!” -Albus Dumbledore, Harry Potter and the Goblet of Fire
• “‘No good sittin’ worryin’ abou’ it,’ he said. ‘What’s comin’ will come, an’ we’ll meet it when it does.'” -Rubeus Hagrid, Harry Potter and the Goblet of Fire
• “We are only as strong as we are united, as weak as we are divided…We can fight it only by showing an equally strong bond of friendship and trust. Differences of habit and language are nothing at all if our aims are identical and our hearts open…Remember, if the time should come when you have to make a choice between what is right and what is easy, remember what happened to a boy who was good, and kind, and brave, because he strayed the path of Lord Voldemort.” -Albus Dumbledore, Harry Potter and the Goblet of Fire
• “And we must unite inside her/Or we’ll crumble from within.” -The Sorting Hat, Harry Potter and the Order of the Phoenix
• “Indifference and neglect often do much more damage than outright dislike.” -Albus Dumbledore, Harry Potter and the Order of the Phoenix
• “Have you any idea how much tyrants fear the people they oppress? All of them realize that, one day, amongst their many victims, there is sure to be one who rises against them and strikes back!”-Albus Dumbledore, Harry Potter and the Half-Blood Prince
• “It is the unknown we fear when we look upon death and darkness, nothing more.” -Albus Dumbledore, Harry Potter and the Half-Blood Prince

Serafina and the Black Cloak

• “Our character isn’t defined by the battles we win or lose, but by the battles we dare to fight.” -Inscription on statue
• “She thought it was interesting how just about everyone had a special talent or skill…nobody knew how to do everything. It wasn’t possible. There wasn’t enough time in the night. But everyone knew something. And everyone was a little different. Some people did one thing. Others did another. It made her think that maybe God intended for them to all fit together, like a puzzle made whole.”

Crossover

• “In this game of life/ your family is the court/ and the ball is your heart.’ No matter how good you are,/ no matter how down you get,/ always leave/your heart/on the court.”
• “Never let anyone/ lower your goals/ other’s expectations/ of you are determined/by their limitations/of life.”