“It looks like a prisoner of war camp to me." Fiona threw her rucksack down in disgust. "I was expecting a five-star hotel at least.”

“It weighed down on me like a rucksack filled with dog turds.”

“If you think God has promised this world will be a five-star hotel, you will be miserable as you live through the normal struggles of life. But if you remember that God promised we would be pilgrims and this world may feel more like a desert or even a prison, you might find your life surprisingly happy.”

“As she walked, trying to find a hotel--any hotel--she was offered at least ten different ways of getting high, four or five ways of getting laid, and at least one way of getting even.”

“At least I don't look like a Christmas tree.""You look like the star atop the tree.”

“I wasn’t sure what expression I was expecting her to wear when she saw that it was me. I’d braced myself for disgust or anger. But she justlooked at me like I was — nothing. An annoyance, maybe.”