Even if you do make tons of new friends,” I told him, “try not to forget where you came from, okay?

Life has a way of disregarding even your best intentions.

As I rolled over, stretching out, my only thought was to go back to the dream I'd been having, which I couldn't remember, other than that it had been good, in that distant, hopeful way unreal things can be.

I had this wild thought that he was the only one in all this chaos who was just like me, and that was comforting and profound all at once.

There comes a time when the world gets quiet and the only thing left is your own heart. So you'd better learn the sound of it. Otherwise you'll never understand what it's saying.

I just do the best I can under the circumstances.

No one could tell you: you just had to go through it on your own. If you were lucky, you came out on the other side and understood. If you didn't, you kept getting thrust back, retracing those steps, until you finally got it right.