At 8, I made a pact with God.

I was never afraid of anything in the world except the dentist.

I am not alone at all, I thought. I was never alone at all. And that, of course, is the message of Christmas. We are never alone. Not when the night is darkest, the wind coldest, the world seemingly most indifferent. For this is still the time God chooses.

The stalwart soul has the will to live and is eager for the race.

A wise man distrusts his neighbor. A wiser man distrusts both his neighbor and himself. The wisest man of all distrusts his government.

I'm not that interested in people

I never deviated from my grim determination to someday have all the money I needed and wanted.