Toni Morrison was an award-winning American novelist who won a Pulitzer Prize in 1988 for her post-Civil War novel “Beloved.” The story follows Sethe, a mother and escaped enslaved woman haunted by the decisions she made while fleeing the plantation where she was held captive. After years of struggling with her perceived mistakes and worrying that she’s lost the “best things” in her life, Sethe is reassured that she is her own best thing, refuting the notion that her identity and worth depend on her role in others’ lives. This quote is a comforting reminder of the inherent value we all have, which exists independently of and is immutable by our external environments.