the separation of church and state grew out of a desire, not so much to protect government from religion, but to protect religion from government.

Maybe I had three children in the first place so I wouldn't ever have to play board games. In my religion, martyrs die.

Well, we tell our kids things like 'don't gossip' and then an hour later they hear us on the phone. Stuff like that.

Some of the most important lessons I've learned have been from stumbling, and I am deeply grateful that my parents allowed me to fight my own battles.

Look back, to slavery, to suffrage, to integration and one thing is clear. Fashions in bigotry come and go. The right thing lasts.

New York City has finally hired women to pick up the garbage, which makes sense to me, since, as I've discovered, a good bit of being a woman consists of picking up garbage.

We are writers. We danced with words, as children, in what became familiar patterns. The words became our friends and our companions, and without even saying it aloud, a thought danced with them: I can do this. This is who I am.