Many divorces are not really the result of irreparable injury but involve, instead, a desire on the part of the man or woman to shatter the setup, start out from scratch alone, and make life work for them all over again. They want the risk of disaster, want to touch bottom, see where bottom is, and, coming up, to breathe the air with relief and relish again.

Men greet each other with a sock on the arm, women with a hug, and the hug wears better in the long run.

A mountain with a wolf on it stands a little taller.

City people try to buy time as a rule, when they can, whereas country people are prepared to kill time, although both try to cherish in their mind's eye the notion of a better life ahead.

Indeed, if "biology is chemistry with history," as somebody has said, then nature writing is biology with love.

There aren't many irritations to match the condescension which a woman metes out to a man who she believes has loved her vainly for the past umpteen years.

Sophistication" is another word for that inventive mix of tolerance, resilience, and resourcefulness city people develop.