Birth is the start of loneliness and loneliness the start of poetry.

Is there a phrase in the English language more fraught with menace than a tax audit?

Unhappiness is our element. We come to believe we can't function without it.

If, every day, I dare to remember that I am here on loan, that this house, this hillside, these minutes are all leased to me, not given, I will never despair.

I actually think leaving your children alone to fantasize, to write, to make projects on their own is good for them. Breathing down their necks is a form of control. Children should have their own space.

Pain is not love. Love flowers; love gives without taking; love is serene and calm.

The bruise on the heart which at first feels incredibly tender to the slightest touch eventually turns all the shades of the rainbow and stops aching. We forget about it. We even forget we have hearts until the next time. And then we wonder how we ever could have forgotten. We think this one is better, because, in fact, we cannot fully remember the time before.