i wanted to try things, everything, especially things that are illegal and have a faint whiff of glamour.

Maybe if everyone walked around being in touch with each other's hidden pain it could work out and even be beautiful, but it doesn't feel safe to be the only compassionate person on the planet.

it just breaks / a man's heart, watching / a girl so involved with her life, / without him like that.

You try to be good, to be good and loving and nice and not hard, not tough, a sweet nice girl, not ugly, not full of ugliness, but people make it impossible.

How do you make a girl know she's beautiful? What is the system for that, what do you show her, how do you give her a new set of eyes and turn her face back to the mirror?

Maybe we could all take care of each other, I dreamed.

This is growing up, having to stomp out love, this is how people turn terrible.

you are right where you should be / now act like it

There are a lot of queers starved for entertainment from their own community.

Sophie knew about power animals, everyone did...Sophie thought she might be a cat, she liked cats a lot.

She was just so sad. Her whole face hung with it, like sadness was her personal gravity.

Every writer in the history of the world has been afraid to put words on the page. But we only remember those who overcame that fear.

His face darkens. He glares at me and I glare back. "Fine!" he yells. "I'm jealous! Are you happy now!"And then he jerks is head toward mine and he kisses me. On the lips.

I can be a goofball sometimes. I love having a good time and being carefree.

A school’s job [is] to begin education.

A wise man once said, never discuss philosophy or politics in a disco environment.

A republic - if you can keep it - is about limitation, and for good reason, because we are mortal and our actions are imperfect.

Buddhism has a very beautiful teaching that says the worst thing you can do to your soul is to tell someone their faith is wrong.

I would take plays and I would cut out all the other dialogue and make long monologues because I felt the other kids weren't taking it as seriously as I did.

I don't want to be a politician. I want to be a leader.

I do think the standards of the media have dropped to an all-time low in terms of credibility.