Then the question began to live under my blankets: How did lesbianism begin? What were the symptoms? The public library gave information on the finished lesbian--and that woefully sketchy--but on the growth of a lesbian, there was nothing. I did discover that the difference between hermaphrodites and lesbians was that hermaphrodites were "born that way." It was impossible to determine whether lesbians budded gradually, or burst into being with a suddenness that dismayed them as much as it repelled society.

I come as one, but stand as 10,000.

A rose by any other name may smell as sweet, but a woman called by a devaluing name will only be weakened by the misnomer.

I'm sorry to say that when some people get to age 50, they say, "Well, that's the end, I'll never have to do sex again." They lay down first and get up last! But in your sixties, everything is sweeter. You have more time.

And one of my absolute favorite quotes of all-time, one that I've adopted as one of my greatest life mottos: Life loves to be taken by the lapel and told: "I'm with you kid. Let's go."

Money and power can liberate only if they are used to do so. They can imprison and inhibit more finally than barred windows and iron chains.

In an unfamiliar culture, it is wise to offer no innovations, no suggestions, or lessons.