The worst part was that I had things I wanted to tell my mother, too many to count, but none of them would go down so easy. She'd been through too much, between my siters-I could not add to the weight. So instead, I did my best to balance it out, bit by bit, word by word, story by story, even if none of them were true.

Failing sucks. But it's better than the alternative." "Which is?" "Not even trying." Now he did look at me, straight on. "Life's short, you know?

Don't be a fool. Don't give up something important to hold onto someone who can't even say they love you.

Change is inevitable, though," he replied. "As is disappointment. Best to get used to it now.

Don't give me no rotten tomato, 'cause all I ever wanted was your sweet potato.

You can't love anyone that way more than once in a lifetime. It's too hard and it hurts too much when it ends.

You're not a sucker. You're just nice. You give people the benefit of the doubt.