My life has been a series of ups and downs lately.

It feels like a roller coaster ride, and I just want to get off.

But we can’t just get off, can we? Whatever the ride may bring—good or bad, pleasant or unpleasant—we have no choice but to stay and say yes.

Saying yes to life when sadness fills our hearts is like being forced to eat when we’re full. It’s hard. It’s complicated. It’s, well, impossible.

When I’m in the midst of an emotional storm and I find it hard to say yes to life, I read books or quotes that soften my dejected heart. They bring me back to the present moment and remind me that even though life may be tough now, it will eventually get better. I will get better.

If you are in the same boat, these quotes will help you to breathe again:

1. “There cannot be ups in a roller-coaster ride unless there are downs.” ~ Siddharth Katragadda

2. “Life is a tragedy when seen in close-up, but a comedy in long-shot.” ~ Charlie Chaplin

3. “Do the one thing you think you cannot do. Fail at it. Try again. Do better the second time. The only people who never tumble are those who never mount the high wire. This is your moment. Own it.” ~ Oprah Winfrey

4. “Men can only be happy when they do not assume that the object of life is happiness.” ~ George Orwell

5. “But if you can plant yourself in stillness long enough, you will, in time, experience the truth that everything (both uncomfortable and lovely) does eventually pass.” ~ Elizabeth Gilbert

6. “We all create the person we become by our choices as we go through life. In a real sense, by the time we are adults, we are the sum total of the choices we have made.” ~ Eleanor Roosevelt

7. “Notice that the stiffest tree is most easily cracked, while the bamboo or willow survives by bending with the wind.” ~ Bruce Lee

8. “We do not need magic to transform our world. We carry all the power we need inside ourselves already. We have the power to imagine better.” ~ J. K. Rowling

9. “From now on practice saying to everything that appears unpleasant: You are merely an appearance and NOT what you appear to be.” ~ Epictetus

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