“The goal of any self-respecting human being tolerant of others is to favor anything that increases a person's ability to control her own fate, and at the very least maintain sovereignty over her own body.”

“Love accepts a human being as she is. Love creates the freedom for a human being to be who she is. Love creates the relaxation, which helps a person to relax into her own inner being, into her own authentic self. Love allows us to appreciate the beautiful being we already are.”

“Renee's self-possession, her ability to possess other selves, is a measure of the weakness of her husband, his inability to stop his own self from splitting in half.”

“While pity shows a lack of respect for other human beings, compassion has its roots in a deep respect for others. Pity is an emotion; compassion is a connection. Compassion sees the other as equal. Compassion happens when we care for another person enough to make his or her problems our own.”

“all human beings have control over their own destiny. that is, after all, our purpose on this planet. not to interfere with the lives of others but to shape our own experiences.”

“And here she was now, over those boulders and parched hills, with a home of her own, a husband of her own, heading toward on final, cherished province: Motherhood. How delectable it was to think of this baby, her baby, their baby. How glorious it was to know that her love for it already dwarfed anything she had ever felt as a human being, to know that there was no need any longer for pebble games.”