“When I cannot write a poem, I bake biscuits and feel just as pleased.”

“Arranging a bowl of flowers in the morning sun can give a sense of quiet in a crowded day - like writing a poem, or saying a prayer.”

“You can’t just write and write and put things in a drawer. They wither without the warm sun of someone else’s appreciation.”

“I must write it all out, at any cost. Writing is thinking. It is more than living, for it is being concious of living.”

“I feel a hunger now- a real hunger-for letting the pool still itself & seeing the reflections.”

“No man is an island,' said John Donne. I feel we are all islands -- in a common sea.”

“And so I miss the fertilization that might come from a contact. And for me--yes, I think I might as well admit it--fertilization does come a great deal from contacts. Why then do I avoid them--in a sort of false pride--shyness--timorous modesty? I used to be afraid of falling in love with people--or having them think I was--that I was chasing them (how ridiculous--I am actually always running away!) but now surely--I should be mature enough to be over that. I am no longer afraid of falling in love, and the other false modesties should vanish. I cannot bear to think "par delicatesse j'ai perdu ma vie." (Because of discretion I have lost my life).”