The stones themselves are thick with history, and those cats that dash through the alleyways must surely be the ghosts of the famous dead in feline disguise.

At certain historic moments, grandparents took on childrearing responsibilities. In many cultures, they still do. Chinese grandparents who are able to retire at 55 are seen all over Beijing bouncing grandbabies. In the United States, we can't afford to retire at 55.

we all carry the Houses of our Youth inside, and our Parents, too, grown small enough to fit within our Hearts.

Someday every woman will have orgasms- like every family has color TV- and we can all get on with the business of life.

Critics write out of intellectual exercise, not poets. Poets write straight from the heart.

In a bad marriage, friends are the invisible glue. If we have enough friends, we may go on for years, intending to leave, talking about leaving -instead of actually getting up and leaving.

We write poems / as leaves give oxygen - / so we can breathe.