Some people don't know how to fall in love, like not knowing how to swim. They panic first when they jump in. Then they figure it out.

When your cup is empty, you do not mourn what is gone. Because if you do, you will miss the opportunity to fill it again.

Always make your needs and expectations known,she used to say. That way no one gets hurt.

Adolescence is like having only enough light to see the step directly in front of you.

...a sad sort of vulnerability was wafting from her, making the night smell like maple syrup.

But one thing she [Rachel] did believe in was love. She believed that you could smell it, that you could taste it, that it could change the entire course of your life.

Your peers when you're a teenager will always be the keepers of your embarrassment and regret. It was one of life's great injustices, that you can move on and be accomplished and happy, but the moment you see someone from high school you immediately become the person you were then, not the person you are now.