The better work men do is always done under stress and at great personal cost.

It is difficult to get the news from poems, yet men die miserably every day for lack of what is found there.

The beauty is in the eye of the beholder.

It is not what you say that matters but the manner in which you say it; there lies the secret of the ages.

The job of the poet is to use language effectively, his own language, the only language which is to him authentic.

The weight of love Has buoyed me up Till my head Knocks against the sky.

As birds' wings beat the solid air without which none could fly so words freed by the imagination affirm reality by their flight.

It is not fair to be old, to put on a brown sweater.

There is nothing beginning nor end to the imagination but it delights in its own seasons reversing the usual order at will.

My first poem was a bolt from the blue … it broke a spell of disillusion and suicidal despondence. ... it filled me with soul satisfying joy.

Somewhere the sense makes copper roses steel roses — The rose carried weight of love but love is at an end — of roses It is at the edge of the petal that love waits.

Support and encouragement are found in the most unlikely places.

God Himself even "forgets" the wickedness committed by those whom He has forgiven. That's why it is never too late to clean up your life.

My mom always said fighting with me as a kid was like going to court. I'm trying to realize that being right is not the most important thing.

There will be no transportation problems in Heaven-you can either glide along, float along or fly!

Difference is always the biggest challenge for humans. That's why we do enjoy reading or watching movies or watching TV. It's a personal challenge to get close to people that we never get close to.

They say African Americans. I say black people. I've only been to Africa once. I've been in America all my life!

Once you call something a story, it's set in stone. It has a beginning, a middle, and an end that can't be transformed, because by definition, if you do that, it's not the same story anymore

I love you in my dreams, but not in real life.

The only way to go further than you've been is to take an extra step.

When I'm in a restaurant, I don't eat red meat. It doesn't taste like anything. But if a friend of mine is grilling stuff at his house, its almost always great.