Peace ... was contingent upon a certain disposition of the soul, a disposition to receive the gift that only detachment from self made possible.

[Salvation] is a curious process of divine burglary. The first thing to be wrested from one by a God who said 'Thou shalt not steal' is one's good opinion of one's self.

Cleanliness', chuckled Sir Benjamin, noting his great niece's delighted smile as her eyes rested upon him, 'comes next to godliness, eh, Maria?

cowardice more than any other failing demands a ruthless paying of the price from those who give it hospitality.

...The simple little words came easily, fitting themselves to the tune that had come out of the harpsichord. It didn't seem to her that she made them up at all. It seemed to her that they flew in from the rose-garden, through the open window, like a lot of butterflies, poised themselves on the point of her pen, and fell off it on to the paper.

Not quite birds, as they were not quite flowers, mysterious and fascinating as are all indeterminate creatures.

Marriage is a very long process.