“All my life, I'd been on the receiving end of my mother's endless tenderness and vigilant care. Being allowed to care for her during her recovery was a gift – the most rewarding experience in my life.”

“A professionally trained actress should be a better liar, wouldn't you think? But no. I am pathetically underachieved in that area. I can think of a great lie. I'm plenty imaginative. But before the words are even out of my mouth, there's a weird tickle of unease in my armpits, a horsefly of guilt lands on the back of my neck, and before I can stop myself, that gassy little bubble of truth belches out.”

“Life's too short. I'm not!”

“Laughter is life-giving. It makes you breathe.”

“The lasting legacy of the Cooter Smash is that I'm the first to know when it's going to rain. That's right. I both sing and predict the weather with my hoo hoo.”

“But there's the beauty of life beyond the bubble. It's possible for someone to see your wicked bits and still love you.”

“I'm sick of people who've never been to church telling me that church is full of hypocrites, and people who've never read the Bible telling me that it's baloney.”