I have sometimes wondered if the greatest desire of man is to be known and loved anyway.

When you stop expecting people to be perfect, you can like them for who they are.

And so I have come to understand that strength, inner strength, comes from receiving love as much as it comes from giving it.

What I believe is not what I say I believe; what I believe is what I do.

You can't tell a good story without conflict - the story can't be beautiful or meaningful. We're taught to run from conflict, and it's robbing us of some really good stories.

If we knew how much God loved us and was for us, we’d talk to Him all day long.

How disappointing would it be get to heaven and find out God created life to be enjoyed while all we did was worry?

There is something beautiful about a billion stars held steady by a God who knows what He is doing.

I can no more understand the totality of God than the pancake I made for breakfast understands the complexity of me

People love to have lived a great story, but few people like the work it takes to make it happen.

All the trees are losing their leaves, and not one of them is worried.

For peace, living in harmony is essential.

A living skeleton isn't enough for you, is it? What does it take to impress young people these days?

It's fun to sing sad songs. And it's fun to listen to sad songs. Enjoyable. Satisfying. Something.

I have collections of quirky things from places I've been to, like a set of Russian dolls.

The very idea of photography is as Oliver Wendell Holmes said in the 19th century, "it's a mirror with a memory."

Meditation is a half-way house between thinking and contemplating.

On every continent and in every epoch the peoples who have excelled in creating wealth have been the victims of some of society's greatest brutalities.

We intend to make this world the most beautiful, glorious planet that any human being can imagine and, really, beyond anything any human being can imagine.

I can say with pride that I have spent days and nights not reading anything, and that with unflagging energy I use every moment toacquire gradually an encyclopedic lack of education.

I say I drownin' in river. She don't look me like I'm crazy but say, If you just sit there the river gonna rise up drown you! Writing could be the boat carry you to the other side. (97)