Something sinister in the tone Told me my secret must be known: Word I was in the house alone Somehow must have gotten abroad, Word I was in my life alone, Word I had no one left but God.

The nearest friends can go With anyone to death, comes so far short They might as well not try to go at all.

The figure a poem makes. It begins in delight and ends in wisdom.

Everything written is as good as it is dramatic. It need not declare itself in form, but it is drama or nothing.

You don't have to deserve your mother's love. You have to deserve your father's.

Far more violence has been done in obeying the law than in breaking the law.

A poet never takes notes. You never take notes in a love affair.