“Her name had the likeness of a name. She had the likeness of a woman, with hands but no face at all, since she never let herself see it. She had the likeness of a life, because she was all alone in...”

“There was no way to abandon guilt, no decent way to disown it. All the tangles and knots of bitterness and desperation and fear had to be pitied. No, better, grace had to fall over them.”

“The best things that happen I'd never have thought to pray for. In a million years. The worst things just come like the weather.”

“She knew better than to waste that time. There isn't always someone who wants you singing to him or nibbling his ear or brushing his cheek with a dandelion blossom. Somebody who knows when you're b...”

“In that eternity of his, where everybody will be happy, how could he feel the lack of her, the loss of her?”

“If you thought dead was just dead, then you wouldn't have to worry about any of this.”

“An extended hand is the best weapon against a clenched fist.”

“If you want your life to stand for peace and kindness, it's helpful to do kind, peaceful things.”

“Demonstrating verbal kindness looks better on everyone know matter what the situation. There's a peace in the heart of the kind person who handles everything with love.”