Humor does not rescue us from unhappiness, but enables us to move back from it a little.

Pain narrows consciousness; pleasure blurs it.

When Medusa looks in the mirror, she sees the Lady of Sorrows.

My passions have never jumped out of the fireplace and set fire to the carpet.

Retirement requires the invention of a new hedonism, not a return to the hedonism of youth

The sewing machine joins what the scissors have cut asunder, plus whatever else comes in its path.

Clothes make a statement. Costumes tell a story.

The laughter of the aphorism is sometimes triumphant, but seldom carefree.

'Be faithful to your roots' is the liberal version of 'Stay in your ghetto.'

Every day begins with an act of courage and hope: getting out of bed.

Totem poles and wooden masks no longer suggest tribal villages but fashionable drawing rooms in New York and Paris.

Nightmares are seldom a foreshadowing of real events, but always a showing of real fears.

Stars shine so they can see the world, not so the world can see them.

An oath is a frightening thing when you are prepared to keep it, and I felt it tightening around my soul even as I gave my pledge.

Forgive yourself for your faults and your mistakes and move on.

I like things in their proper places.

The certainty of our salvation rests on the character of God.

As prime minister, I will never make a decision that will be an injustice to Serbia and its citizens.

We need silence to be able to touch souls.

Our journey of discipleship is not a dash around the track, nor is it fully comparable to a lengthy marathon. In truth, it is a lifelong migration toward a more celestial world.

Regarding R. H. Blyth: Two men who may be called pillars of the Western haiku movement, Harold G. Henderson and R. H. Blyth. . . .