For an adult, eating alone at McDonald's is admitting a kind of defeat.

Salzburg... is a mountain town with a rushing river running right through the center, everything in the rain various shades of green and brown.

There's almost always a point in a book where something happens that triggers the rest of the plot.

The only two important things in life are real love and being at peace with yourself.

I have never heard anyone say This is it. I know right now is the high point of my life. It will never get any better. Only in retrospect do we recognize the best times and of course then it is too late.

Buying a pair of shoes is one of the most optimistic acts I know, next to falling in love. I like nothing better than to see an old man wearing a brand new pair of brogues or cap-toed oxfords, preferably jaunty orange-brown, unscuffed, heels unworn. We want to be here tomorrow, but buying new shoes, like falling in love, says I plan on being here tomorrow.

Fear pounds on the door to our heart demanding to be let in. Joy is modest and often comes into our lives like a shy person entering a room; it can take a while to even notice it's there.