In the day-to-day, farm work is stress relief for me. At the end of the day, I love having this other career - my anti-job - that keeps me in shape and gives me control over a vegetal domain.

People read books to escape the uncertainties of life.

There's a graveyard in northern France where all the dead boys from D-Day are buried. The white crosses reach from one horizon to the other. I remember looking it over and thinking it was a forest of graves. But the rows were like this, dizzying, diagonal, perfectly straight, so after all it wasn't a forest but an orchard of graves. Nothing to do with nature, unless you count human nature.

Our childhood had passed over into history overnight. The transition was unnoticed by anyone but ourselves.

...nothing momentous comes in this world unless it comes on the shoulders of kindness.

War so conspicuously benefits rich men and kills the poor ones.

Our house is like an empty cigarette packet, lying around reminding you what's not in it.