“It was then, there in the darkness, with only those little pin-points of light to see by, light from a world away where other people with their own problems and their own secrets lived their own lives, that everything in our world changed for good.”

“The Little Drummer Boy" was playing in the background for what seemed like the third time in a row. I fought off an urge to beat that Little Drummer Boy seneless with his own drumsticks.”

“One day things can be going along like they always were and then, suddenly, in a simple rotation of an overheated planet, everything can change.”

“Precision about language can be really, really annoying. It can make you miss the point of what the other person is saying altogether.”

“There's no going back from what happened. You can go back and understand the past, but you can't go back and change it.”

“Some things you can fix, and some things you can’t. And I just think it is a shame to walk away from the things you can.”

“Linus closes his eyes and puts his arms out at his sides. "Look to this day. For it is life. The very life of life." I stand beside him. Quiet. He continues. "It its brief course lie all the verities and realities of your existence. The splendor of beauty, the bliss of growth, the glory of action. Today well lived makes every yesterday a dream of happiness, and every tomorrow a vision of hope." He opens his eyes and looks at me. "It's an ancient Sufi text." He smiles. "My mantra." He folds his paper, bats me over the head with it and walks away.”