We simply do not understand our place in the universe and have not the courage to admit it.

My function as a writer is to provide an atmosphere in which people can think wisely about what we're doing on this planet.

We keep each other alive with our stories. We need to share them, as much as we need to share food. We also require for our health the presence of good companions. One of the most extraordinary things about the land is that it knows this—and it compels language from some of us so that as a community we may converse about this or that place, and speak of the need.

I lay there knowing something eerie ties us to the world of animals. Sometimes the animals pull you backward into it. You share hunger and fear with them like salt in blood.

You can't learn anything from saguaro cactus, from ocotillo. They are just passing through; their roots, their much heralded dormancy in the dry season, these are only illusions of permanence. They know even less than you do.

There's so much to be afraid of.

The wolf exerts a powerful influence on the human imagination. It takes your stare and turns it back on you