This woman’s size protected herfrom the hurts of the worldbut it also imprisoned her soul. As the merry-go-round revolved, she ate another French fry, as a silent scream frozen on her face.

Making amends is not only saying the words but also being willing to listen to how your behavior caused another’s pain, and then the really hard part…changing behavior.

The more severe the dysfunction you experienced growing up, the more difficult boundaries are for you.

The greater the pain associated with love, the more likely a person is to be attracted to others who will inflict this pain…for isn’t this what love is? Hurt people tend to hurt other people.

It is one thing to know about your dysfunctional habits but quite another to change them.

If you are looking for love under rocks or bringing home water moccasins, you might be confusing love and pain.

Sitting on the hot seat of change requires much courage, patience, and persistence.

If we want to improve, first we have to recognize our own maladaptive coping skills, called codependency, then change.

Change will not successfully happen unless the emotional component is solved.

Putting labels on others creates a black hole of disregard where judgment thrives and schisms deepen.

Change is hard, difficult, painful, and often messy

You either live to become an anchor of inspiration for those around you, or you live to become an anchor for a lesson for them. Whatever you become, it is entirely up to you to decide.

I think that at the bottom of all art lies the impulse to preserve.

Nature is the supreme cradle of life, and must be protected and treated with the highest respect and care.

You get what you order in life.

Desperation will allow you to do incredible things in the name of survival.

The Irish do not want anyone to wish them well; they want everyone to wish their enemies ill.

Every one of us loves Pauline theology, but few of us want Pauline pain.

To get anywhere, or even to live a long time, a man has to guess, and guess right, over and over again, without enough data for a logical answer.

I never really had to deal with a death in the family, let alone my brother.

If there's one thing I discovered since I came back from hiatus, it's that you can't go backwards.