“If you make happy those that are near, those that are far will come.”

“She's my friend, the boy said simply. That's who she is and that's enough for me. As Minli looked at the buffalo boy, aglow with happiness against his poor surroundings, she saw it was enough for him. More than enough, as the smile that kept curling up on his face told her.”

“Bringing fortune to our house! Making Fruitless Mountain bloom! You're always wishing to do impossible things! Stop believing stories and stop wasting your time.”

“That is a question you have to ask the Old Man of the Moon.”

“Yes," Ba said sadly, "it is impossible. But it is not ridiculous.”

“Whenever I see her, we laugh enough to last for the month. She's my best friend, and someday when we're old enough I'm going to talk her into staying here forever.”

“Art is very tricky because it's what you do for yourself. It's much harder for me to make those works than the monuments or the architecture. ”