I've shared the fate of many working mothers; I felt guilty like them.

Being First Lady is playing supporting act. I am not seeking notoriety and I am not seeking to grab the limelight.

My feeling is that maintaining financial independence is also a healthy way to keep my feet on the ground.

In France, a first lady has no status, and therefore she isn't supposed to do anything else.

I built my entire life on the idea of independence.

I have never worn dresses by grands couturiers.

My perception of life is not to ask Francois Hollande, who isn't the father of my children, to support me financially.

I will count to 10 before tweeting.

I know politics; I know the media.

I am, and remain, passionate about news.

I am a committed observer. I like staying in the background and seeing what's going on.

So much is yet to come. Soon will be blankets and pillows, and books by the bed to make the stuff of dreams. And then tomorrows.

Following all the rules leaves a completed checklist. Following your heart achieves a completed you.

No one wants to die alone, even though that's how it happens to all of us, even though we pretend there's some other ways.

In its purest form, a union becomes part of our very essence. And when that bond is broken, our essence is forever changed.

I look at old performance videos now, and it's really funny - I thought I was such a gangster!

Life is like a fire. Flames which the passer-by forgets. Ashes which the wind scatters. A man lived.

When one door is closed, don't you know, another is open.

The fact that we often judge the pleasure of an experience by its ending can cause us to make some curious choices.

Children are a house's enemy. They don't mean to be - they just can't help it. It's their enthusiasm, their energy, their naturally destructive tendencies.

Because confidence is like respect; you have to earn it.