People are like animals. Some are happiest penned in, some need to roam free. You go to recognize what's in her nature and accept it.

People are like animals. Some are happiest penned in, some need to roam free. You go to recognize what's in her nature and accept it.

I hate Erma," I told Mom... "You have to show compassion for her..." She added that you should never hate anyone, even your worst enemies. "Everyone has something good about them," she said. "You have to find the redeeming quality and love the person for that." "Oh yeah?" I said. "How about Hitler? What was his redeeming quality?" "Hitler loved dogs," Mom said without hesitation.

When people kill themselves, they think they're ending the pain, but all they're doing is passing it on to those they leave behind.

Too much hard luck can create a permanent meanness of spirit in any creature.

One time I saw a tiny Joshua tree sapling growing not too far from the old tree. I wanted to dig it up and replant it near our house. I told Mom that I would protect it from the wind and water it every day so that it could grow nice and tall and straight. Mom frowned at me. "You'd be destroying what makes it special," she said. "It's the Joshua tree's struggle that gives it its beauty.

What I do know is that wondering why you survived don't help you survive.