“I got it this time, Daddy Warbucks,” I said,”

“When I was sure she was asleep, I got up and went into Mother's room and pulled her yellow nightie out from the bottom drawer of her dresser, and then I got Daddy's Timex from the dressing table and put it on my wrist. After I said my prayers and told Daddy I was sorry like I did every night, I laid down at the foot of Mother's bed and drifted off to the sound of rain that was strong enough to be good for the crops, and tried and tried to remember the last time I felt safe.”

“I'm getting a girlfriend soon," said Michael in a serious tone, and everyone laughed."You've got plenty of time for that, kiddo," said his father. "No need to rush.""Well, I don't want a boyfriend, Daddy," said Madeline. "Boys are dirty, and they make a mess when they eat.""I'd imagine the six-year-old ones would." Xavier chuckled. "But don't worry, they get better at it.”

“According to Daddy, that was a time of general lunacy in Neely, but then Daddy has always said there's nothing like a good snowfall to bring out the feeble-mindedness in people. ”

“Daddy always said that an option that you know to have a bad outcome is only a fool's option, i.e., not an option at all. And I liked to think that Daddy hadn't raised a fool.”

“At some point the talk got heated, and Paolo called Mother a strumpet, for which Daddy was said to have stomped a serious mudhole in Paolo's ass.”