“People told her she hadn't changed much, in a tone which hinted they were surprised and a little disappointed she hadn't.”

“Alice's robes were seasonal. She hadn't exactly plannedit that way, but that's how it evolved. In winter there was a long,warm, deep purple terry-cloth robe. In spring she changed to a newblue-and-white cotton kimono. In summer there was a white chenillebathrobe with a pattern on it, and in the fall she wore a cotton robe herhusband had bought her as a surprise gift. They were useful, practicalgarments, but when she thought about it, she realized she wore them asmuch for the feelings and memories they evoked as much as their physicalcomfort. When I told her I thought her robes had become like templegarments, she smiled,"Yes.”

“And the worst thing she had heard were the words he hadn't said, the fact that he hadn't loved her.”

“He'd told her it was just a scratch and got cross when she hadn't offered morphine.”

“It hadn't occurred to him that if she had little else, it would be that much more important to Joan Findlay to cling to her one valuable possession-her pride.”

“He read disappointment at his response and wondered if she realized that she expected a certain amount of effusive sympathy from the people she told. Rejecting that sympathy made her feel strong, compensating for what she perceived as her weakness. He suspected that the disease was the first time she hadn't been able to make everything come out all right through the sheer determination that it would be.”