Fussing over children who cry only encourages them. That's positive reinforcement for negative behavior.

You should never hate anyone, even your worst enemies. Everyone has something good about them. You have to find the redeeming quality and love the person for that.

One benefit of Summer was that each day we had more light to read by.

You can't cling to the side your whole life, that one lesson every parent needs to teach a child is "If you don't want to sink, you better figure out how to swim

Life is a drama full of tragedy and comedy. You should learn to enjoy the comic episodes a little more.

You're in a horse race but you're thinking like a sheep. Sheep don't win horse races.

Sometimes you need a little crisis to get your adrenaline flowing and help you realize your potential.

If you had weak eyes, they needed exercise to get strong. Glasses were like crutches. They prevented people with feeble eyes from seeing the world on their own.

It's the Joshua tree's struggle that gives it its beauty.

You didn't need a college degree to become one of the people who knew what was really going on. If you paid attention, you could pick things up on your own.

New Yorkers, I figured, just pretended to be unfriendly.

I feel there’s no need to overstate.

In a regular class I don't focus on the form, but I think that focus is helpful for brainstorming and coming up with ideas quickly, especially with autobiographical material.

I am probably exaggerating a little, but I owe my equilibrium to ink and paper.

Literacy is a bridge from misery to hope.

Love is the strange attractor, the allurement that holds the Uni-verse together.

I've been called a minimalist composer for more than 30 years, and while I've never really agreed with the description, I've gotten used to it.

I believe that in this life, we are defined not by the station in life into which we are born, nor by our pedigree, race, or religion, but by the choices we make.

Do any deserve liberty who are not ready to give it to others? Let us calmly go to work, instead of dissipating our energy in unnecessary fretting and fuming.

I feel that all a writer has is his own experience.

Graciousness is the fruit of someone who knows how badly they themselves need grace.