You never came home for lunch: you just stayed doing, playing, having fun, surfing, running round.

I had a place in England and was commuting from England to Australia, which is pretty stupid, but after two years I sort of knew what I wanted to do, more or less.

I was often very, incredibly naughty, and if I didn't come home at tea time I used to be sent to bed without any dinner. But people used to bring me things: I was better fed in bed.

I sort of was good at writing essays. I was never very good at mathematics, and I was never very good at algebra. I loved science, but I wasn't sure of it.

I learnt the theory of movement, which I still teach sometimes. I was very, very ambitious to learn a skill.

When I did Taming of the Shrew, I was very tired, and I decided to have a holiday and make a documentary.

If there was a distraction I'd get up and jump out the window. I was quite out of hand. In schools like that I don't think they expect that girls are going to behave in such an outrageous fashion.

I got through my teen years by being a bit of a clown.

Wherever the wings of love take me, that is my flare path and my way.

Blank House was exactly a nice empty sheet where nothing was accountable because you were so naughty that you were in Blank House.

I had a quick ear and could pick up languages.

When life hands you the unthinkable you must find new ways to see.

A real and admirable writer is the one who can write good books but can take criticisms better.

Do the possible, and let God do the impossible.

I think people can be trusted to know what makes them unhappy. Maybe we don't always know what we want exactly, but we can usually say what we don't with a fair amount of specificity.

Why are there not positive mysteries? It's always who stole the diamond, or who killed the butler? How about... who made cookies, somebody cleaned my room.

I've read that under trauma, that you have this ability to kind of disconnect from the experience.

When there is no thought in the mind, no thought of thought, when the mind is quiet but fully alert, we experience a little bit of enlightenment.

And where there's pure love, there is no room for anger of any kind.

I am convinced that Christian fundamentalism is a far greater threat to this country than Muslim terrorists could ever be.

In my heart, my first desire was to be a dancer. I always wanted to dance and I danced from the time I was 7 till I was well into my 30s.