So often survivors have had their experiences denied, trivialized, or distorted. Writing is an important avenue for healing because it gives you the opportunity to define your own reality. You can say: This did happen to me. It was that bad. It was the fault & responsibility of the adult. I was—and am—innocent.” The Courage to Heal by Ellen Bass & Laura Davis

There's a part of every living thing that wants to become itself: the tadpole into the frog, the chrysalis into the butterfly, a damaged human being into a whole one.That is spirituality.

I wanted to be a writer since I was in high school, but I never thought it was possible.

Visualizing how you want to be is [an] effective way to move toward your goal.

No matter how many vitamins you take, how much Pilates, you'll lose your keys, your hair and your memory.

I live in Santa Cruz. I moved here in 1974 and couldn't leave.

I think many people love poetry who don't know they love it. People are sometimes afraid of poetry, or they've been introduced to poetry that doesn't speak to them.