we need poetry most at those moments when life astounds us with losses, gains, or celebrations. We need it most when we are most hurt, most happy, most downcast, most jubilant. Poetry is the language we speak in times of greatest need. And the fact that it is an endangered species in our culture tells us that we are in deep trouble.

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.

Take your life in your own hands, and what happens? A terrible thing: no one to blame.

Pleasure is terrifying because it breaks down the boundaries between people. Embracing passion means living with fear.

Writing has often been accompanied by terror, silences, and then wild bursts of private laughter that suddenly make all the dread seem worthwhile.

The dilemma is that if one does not risk anything one risks even more.

The soul is awakened through service.