Work for something because it is good, not just because it stands a chance to succeed.

It is not enough to stare up the steps, we must step up the stairs.

Follow the man who seeks the truth; run from the man who has found it.

Modern man must descend the spiral of his own absurdity to the lowest point; only then can he look beyond it. It is obviously impossible to get around it, jump over it, or simply avoid it.

Nothing is more powerful than individuals acting out of their own conscience.

Without commonly shared and widely entrenched moral values and obligations, neither the law, nor democratic government, nor even the market economy will function properly.

Hope is definitely not the same thing as optimism. It is not the conviction that something will turn out well, but the certainty that something makes sense, regardless of how it turns out.

This is a confusing and uncertain period, when a thousand wise words can go completely unnoticed, and one thoughtless word can provoke an utterly nonsensical furor.

We must not be afraid of dreaming the seemingly impossible if we want the seemingly impossible to become a reality.

There are times when we must sink to the bottom of our misery to understand truth, just as we must descend to the bottom of a well to see the stars in broad daylight.

Lying can never save us from another lie.

Money. It fits around your neck like some permanent noose. always waiting for your next misstep.

Anxiety and conscience are a powerful pair of dynamos. Between them they have ensured that I shall work hard but they cannot ensure that one shall work at anything worthwhile.

We've all met those who seem to radiate happiness. They seem to smile more than others they laugh more than others - just being around them makes us happier as well.

I write all day every day, so when I feel unproductive, it magnifies everything else.

No matter what federal program one selects - Social Security, Medicare, Medicaid, the drug war, the income tax and the IRS, education, foreign interventions and wars - they are all a giant mess.

Look! Nature is overflowing with the grandeur of God!

Even as a young child, I was a lover of books and of the spaces in which, as indeed in a sacred temple, books might safely reside.

I don't give a damn if I go to hell. I love you Satan. The road to hell is paved with good intentions.

No person writes to win awards.

Fashion's been really good to me. It financed Patti Smith: Dream of Life.