I couldn't have foreseen all the good things that have followed my mother's death. The renewed energy, the surprising sweetness of grief. The tenderness I feel for strangers on walkers. The deeper love I have for my siblings and friends. The desire to play the mandolin. The gift of a visitation.

Whatever you do, don't congratulate yourself too much, or berate yourself either. Your choices are half chance. So are everybody else's.

Every day each of us wakes up, reaches into drawers and closets, pulls out a costume for the day and proceeds to dress in a style that can only be called preposterous.

Remember compliments you receive. Forget the insults. If you succeed in doing this, tell me how.

Be kind to your knees, you’ll miss them when they’re gone.

You can map your life through your favorite movies, and no two people's maps will be the same.

Good art is art that allows you to enter it from a variety of angles and to emerge with a variety of views.