“Do you rememberFuck, yes. Merrick stood. And if youre telling this story, Im getting the bottle.”

“He went through the bills with the jaundiced eye of a China trader, asking himself not whether he had been stolen from, but where the theft had occurred. If he couldnt find it, that would suggest h...”

“Do you remember—”“Fuck, yes.” Merrick stood. “And if you’re telling this story, I’m getting the bottle.”

“Accidents ambush the unsuspecting, often violently, just like love.”

“Almost nothing happens by accident. Theres no use getting upset and losing your peace. Sometimes out of your pain comes purpose.”

“It was no accident that one of the first things God asked of Adam was for him to name the animals he saw around him. Why do you suppose God asked man to do that? Because once you have a name, you h...”

“You have the right to promote your own happiness just like everyone else, just like me. Your present dream has been shattered, but you can dream another. You should know that 'you can't relive old ...”

“And then it occurs to me. They are frightened. In me, they see their own daughters, just as ignorant, just as unmindful of all the truths and hopes they have brought to America. They see daughters ...”

“What happens when a hundred thousand people memorize the same poem? Does anything change?”

“Its important to be comfortable with uncertainty.”

“The Chinese use two brush strokes to write the word 'crisis.' One brush stroke stands for danger; the other for opportunity. In a crisis, be aware of the danger--but recognize the opportunity.”

“If we don't change the direction we are headed, we will end up where we are going.”