A fondness for martyrdom, especially of the verbal variety, is common to the young.

..he continues to cling to the forlorn hope that I will turn into one of those swooning females...and fling myself squeeling at him whenever anything happens. Like all men, he clings to his illusions.

There was no warning, not even a knock. The door flew open, and he forgot his present aches and pains in anticipation of what lay in store. The figure that stood in the door was not that of an enemy. It was worse. It was his mother.

Humor is an excellent method of keeping a tight rein on unproductive displays of emotion.

A lady cannot be blamed if a master criminal takes a fancy to her.

Spring is always cruel, with its false promise of resurrection.

There is nothing sadder than the cheerful letters of the dead, expressing hopes that were never fulfilled, ambitions that were never achieved, dreams cut off before they could come to fruition.