In the spring mornings I would work early while my wife still slept. The windows were open wide and the cobbles of the street were drying after the rain.

You must be prepared to work always without applause.

I was blown up while we were eating cheese.

And another thing. Don’t ever kid yourself about loving some one. It is just that most people are not lucky enough ever to have it. You never had it before and now you have it. What you have with Maria, whether it lasts just through today and a part of tomorrow, or whether it lasts for a long life is the most important thing that can happen to a human being. There will always be people who say it does not exist because they cannot have it. But I tell you it is true and that you have it and that you are lucky even if you die tomorrow.

Wine is the most civilized thing in the world.

Life is pain, so live it up while you can.

Mice: What is the best early training for a writer? Y.C.: An unhappy childhood.