I asked God to help me understand the story of the forest and what it means to be a tree in that story.

When you stop expecting people to be perfect, you can like them for who they are. And when you stop expecting material possessions to complete you, you'd be surprised at how much pleasure you get in material possessions. And when you stop expecting God to end all your troubles, you'd be surprised how much you like spending time with God.

If honesty is the key to intimacy, it means we don't have to be perfect and we don't have to pretend to be perfect.

It blew my mind that what I was thinking was actually applicable to people's lives, and it certainly revolutionized family.

And so I have come to understand that strength, inner strength, comes from receiving love as much as it comes from giving it.

It's something you can actually control. With writing, it feels like it's given to you, and when the good stuff hits, it feels like it's coming from some other planet.And you're just channeling it.

I'm the kind of person who wants to present my most honest, authentic self to the world, so I hide backstage and rehearse honest and authentic lines until the curtain opens.