A galaxy is composed of gas and dust and stars - billions upon billions of stars. Every star may be a sun to someone.

The candle flame gutters. Its little pool of light trembles. Darkness gathers. The demons begin to stir.

Our loyalties are to the species and the planet. We speak for Earth.

The Bill of Rights decoupled religion from the state, in part because so many religions were steeped in an absolutist frame of mind - each convinced that it alone had a monopoly on the truth and therefore eager for the state to impose this truth on others.

She had studied the universe all her life, but had overlooked its clearest message: For small creatures such as we the vastness is bearable only through love.

Wisdom lies in understanding our limitations.

We are, in a way, temporary ambulatory repositories for our nucleic acids. This does not deny our humanity; it does not prevent us from pursuing the good, the true and the beautiful. But it would be a great mistake to ignore where we have come from in our attempt to determine where we are going.