Words to me were magic. You could say a word and it could conjure up all kinds of images or feelings or a chilly sensation or whatever. It was amazing to me that words had this power.

I hid my deepest feelings so well I forgot where I placed them.

My mother said I was a clingy kid until I was about four. I also remember that from the age of eight she and I fought almost every day.

If you can't change your fate, change your attitude.

So sad! This is the saddest part when you lose someone you love- that person keeps changing. And later you wonder, Is this the same person I lost?

I am like a falling star who has finally found her place next to another in a lovely constellation, where we will sparkle in the heavens forever.

Writing is an extreme privilege but it's also a gift. It's a gift to yourself and it's a gift of giving a story to someone.

I was six when my mother taught me the art of invisible strength..."strongest wind cannot be seen."

How can you blame a person for his fears and weaknesses unless you have felt the same and done differently?

Libraries are the pride of the city.

Who knows where inspiration comes from. Perhaps it arises from desperation. Perhaps it comes from the flukes of the universe, the kindness of the muses.

You can learn to write by writing.

Love is kind. Kind is love.

When you fondle meWith your feathery hands, Then…! I feelThe cabal’s of fireflyCreep into my soul

Intoxicating affections mimic marriage. They don’t last!

Leave the matter of religion to the family altar, the church, and the private school, supported entirely by private contributions. Keep the church and state forever separate.

People need religion. It's a vehicle for a moral tradition. A crucial role. Nothing can take its place.

What you do for Jewish New Year is you go down to Times Square. It's a lot quieter than the regular New Year. It's just a few Jews walking around going, "sup?"

Watch, witness. Your body is not you; your mind is not you. You are just a pure witness.

And then the witness, if you go down into the witness, that has the spiritual being. Down there, in your soul, you'll get far more love than you ever got out there.

I think I'm actually quite a materialistic person, I value what it takes to make a car or build a nice house. Money does change things, but how it changes people depends on how they react to it.