Morris was not the type to offer a hug or even hold your hand. But there was something in his quiet indignation at the universe then--and Luke, now--that was just the kind of comfort I needed. "I'm such a mess," I said. "We're almost off the island and I didn't even ask you where you were going." He shrugged. "No place. Wherever you are.

What you have to decide... is how you want your life to be. If your forever was ending tomorrow, would this be how you'd want to have spent it? Listen, the truth is, nothing is guaranteed. You know that more than anybody. So dont be afraid. Be alive.

Now I felt like I was drifting, sucked down by an undertow, and too far out to swim back to the shore.

I always say that teenagers are the first to know if you're pandering to them.

During this time we've been apart, it's you I've thought of when I'm at my weakest, and you who have pulled me through.

Everything, in the end, comes down to timing. One second, one minute, one hour could make all the difference.

What is family? They were the people who claimed you. In good, in bad, in parts or in whole, they were the ones who showed up, who stayed there, regardless.