Some lines from characters who carry the light stick with them — whether that means hope, moral clarity, or just a really punchy heroic speech — have a way of sticking in my brain. I still find myself muttering Gandalf's line when the week gets hectic: Gandalf in 'The Lord of the Rings' — All we have to decide is what to do with the time that is given to us. I first heard it on a rainy commute and it made the sky feel like less of a ceiling and more like possibility.
Then there are the flashier, teeth-clenching proclamations that also count as light because they change the world around them. Light Yagami in 'Death Note' says things that are chilling and brilliant at once, like I am justice and I will create a new world without crime. Even if he's complicated morally, those words show how language can reshape reality for people who believe in a cause. On the kinder side, Uncle Iroh in 'Avatar: The Last Airbender' — When we hit our lowest point, we are open to the greatest change — has saved me during low-energy afternoons more times than I can count.
I like to collect these lines in a dog-eared notebook, beside grocery lists and bad doodles. They’re useful as bookmarks for moods: fierce, calm, stubborn, hopeful. If you want a starter pack, grab a cup of tea and watch a scene or two from 'The Lord of the Rings', 'Death Note', and 'Avatar: The Last Airbender' back-to-back — you’ll see how different kinds of light speak differently, and maybe pick a phrase to pin on your wall.