“Your qualifications, your CV, are not your life, though you will meet many people of my age and older who confuse the two. Life is difficult, and complicated, and beyond anyone's control, and the humility to know that will enable you to survive its vicissitudes.”

“Personal happiness lies in knowing that life is not a checklist of acquisition. Your qualifications are not your life.”

“Have more humility. Remember you don't know the limits of your own abilities. Successful or not, if you keep pushing beyond yourself, you will enrich your own life – and maybe even please a few strangers.”

“It seems as though time stands still or is frozen in your memory when you meet the love of your life. Your heart sets it sights on that individual it doesn’t consult with your mind…nothing else exist. It is as though in that single moment there is no one else but the two of you in the universe.”

“To anyone reading this who has ever felt disheartened and confused, hurt or lost...you are not alone. You are surrounded by countless multitudes of people everywhere who are just like you. Just like us. But you don't have to stay confused or lost or in pain. We might forget this sometimes - or may not know it at all. But there is nothing in your life, no matter how difficult or painful, that cannot be turned into something very beautiful. So please, have lots of hope.”

“I count too heavily on birthdays, though I know I shouldn't. Inevitably I begin to assess my life by them, figure out how I'm doing by how many people remember; it's like the old fantasy of attending your own funeral: You get to see who your friends are, get to see who shows up. ”