“When two people love each other, they do not comply and does not dominate, only complement each other.”

“We had been so close to missing each other, he and I. He had turned out to be the greatest gift of all.”

“I don't have that many days left," he said as we sat together in the library. "Why would I want to spend them on matters of drainage and overdue accounts? I must husband my hours and spend every one of them wisely. I regret that I didn't come to this realization until I reached fifty years of age. Calpurnia, you would do well to adopt such an attitude at an earlier age. Spend each of your allotted hours with care.”

“I put on my thickest red flannel nightie and dove into bed. Mercifully, SanJuanna had taken the chill off the sheets with a warming pan. I intended to lie there for a while and take stock of my life. That's what you do at the end of the century, don't you? I think I actually fell asleep right away and only dreamed I was taking stock.”

“Lula," I said, "do you ever think about getting married?"I guess I do. Doesn't everybody?"You have to let your husband kiss you once you're married. And you have to kiss him back."No," she said.Yes." I nodded, as if I knew everything there was to know about husbands and wives kissing. "That's what they do together."Do you have to?"Oh, absolutely. It's the law."I never heard of that law," she said dubiously.It's true, it's Texas law," I said.”

“It's amazing what you can see when you just sit quietly and look.”

“They all knew this, but this didn't stop them from good-naturedly crowding around the front door every time it opened, every single time, despite the fact that they were never -EVER- let into the house. I loved this particularly fine thing about dogs: Despite a lifetime of denied entrance, hope never died in their hearts.”