“Above all, she wanted to look as though she had not given the matter a moment's thought, and that would take time.”

“She followed slowly, taking a long time,As though there were some obstacles in the way;And yet: as though, once it was overcome,She would be beyond all walking, and would fly.”

“How ironic, she thought, as she fell to her certain death, that at that moment she would have given anything to be a giant goose again.”

“He would not let her go. Even though, staring into her open eyes in the swirling salt-filled water, with sun flashing though each wave, he thought he would like this moment to be forever: the dark-haired woman on shore calling for their safety, the girl who had once jumped rope like a queen, now holding him with a fierceness that matched the power of the ocean—oh, insane, ludicrous, unknowable world! Look how she wanted to live, look how she wanted to hold on.”

“With the last months spent preparing to face this darkness, it was improbable that the end of her story would be a happy one. She had considered death, maybe even accepted it, at times even wished for it. But no matter how many times she had thought it over, no matter the circumstances, it didn’t matter to her now.”

“It's only a matter of getting through the next few moments, she thought: take care of the next few moments, and then the next, a few at a time, and after a while it will be easier; you'll get over it, after a while.”