“We sit here stranded, though we're all doin' our best to deny it”

“For life be, after all, only a waitin' for somethin' else than what we're doin'; and death be all that we can rightly depend on.”

“Writers are not here to conform. We are here to challenge. We're not here to be comfortable—we're here, really, to shake things up. That's our job.”

“I'm here, Tess. I'm right here, holding your hand. Adam's here, too, he's sitting on the other side of the bed. And Cal. Mum's on her way, she'll be just a minute. We all love you, Tessa. We're all right here with you.”

“We're not God. All we can do is our best. But when I look at you... I get the feeling that the limit of "your best" is up to you.”

“...spiritually speaking, here's an important analogy: we're not accountable for how our accomplishments measure up to the gifted person sitting next to us. However, we are accountable for what we do with what we've been given.”