Honestly, that is the most important thing to me: Can I continue to live up to my own expectations of myself - and not fall back into slacking?

Many people are aware that we are in peril and that there is no trustworthy leadership.

I believe God is everything, say Shug. Everything that is or ever was or ever will be. And when you can feel that, and be happy to feel that, you've found It.

We're going to have to debunk the myth that Africa is a heaven for black people -- especially black women. We've been the mule of the world there and the mule of the world here.

People who work hard often work too hard. ... May we learn to honor the hammock, the siesta, the nap and the pause in all its forms.

Life is better than death, I believe, if only because it is less boring, and because it has fresh peaches in it.

I have fought and kicked and fasted and prayed and cursed and cried myself to the point of existing.