For most of my life, I have wanted broad impact but now, at 72, I'm not so sure that's always my first priority.

... I vowed that I would always respect the right of an individual to kill himself. Whether suicide was a moral or immoral act I no longer felt sure, but of the dignity of its intransigence I was convinced.

A personal essay often includes some or a lot of personal confession. That makes the reader feel less lonely in their confusion and darkness.

Until people see poetry as springing from all of life, they will isolate it in a creativity corner and treat it like a mascot.

The trick is to realize that one is not important, except insofar as one’s example can serve to elucidate a more widespread human trait and make readers feel a little less lonely and freakish.

Indeed, at times it's best to shut up.

If someone in my family is getting emotionally bent out of shape, I've had to learn to adapt.