What I suddenly understood was that a thank-you note isn't the price you pay for receiving a gift, as so many children think it is, a kind of minimum tribute or toll, but an opportunity to count your blessings. And gratitude isn't what you give in exchange for something; it's what you feel when you are blessed--blessed to have family and friends who care about you, and who want to see you happy. Hence the joy from thanking.

You can truly miss characters. Not like you miss people, but you can still miss them.

You don't have to have one emotion at a time.

The greatest gift you can give anyone is your undivided attention.

And my first item on each day's list is this: Wake up. If I can check that off, I've already done something and can get on with the business of living and trying to honor the memory of those I love who are no longer here.

Reading isn't the opposite of doing, it's the opposite of dying.

If I'd waited until I was well rested to read, I never would have read anything.