“Every action in this world, every word, every thought, has an effect. But the actor is also acted upon by his action. The condition on which you are allowed to make a change in the world is that the world changes you as well.”

“Are we not, all of us, in some way, damaged mirrors? Are we not constantly engaged in focusing the light of thought—memories out of the depths of human experience—onto the photographic plate of each moment? The image captured in this instant is a snapshot of all eternity, subtly altered by our own brokenness. And who’s to say that the image formed by a damaged mirror is not a truer picture of the universe?”

“It’s one of those times when the question is its own answer…. The writing is itself the solution to the inability to write!”

“Regret is not the same as guilt. It is expressed by: ‘I can’t believe I did that. It’s not like me. This is not how I am! How could I do such a thing?’ It means to see ourselves as the best we can be, and to be disappointed in not living up to that.”

“There is a continuity in our lives—a strain of music that flows through it all, unaltered by death or pain. It is true that in the face of pain and death, we are very small. But in the face of life and memory and love, even death is very small.”

“Every action in this world, every word, every thought, has an effect. But the actor is also acted upon by his action. The condition on which you are allowed to make a change in the world is that the world changes you as well.”