“Rome took all the vanity out of me,for after seeing the wonders there, I felt too insignificant to live, and gave up all my foolish hopes in dispare.”

“I gave you all the happiness of my life,where are you ? You took my joy away from me,where are you ? give it back,i have life too.”

“Something in my gut twisted so hard that it felt like I was being tickled by an invisible hand, and it took me a moment to realize what it was. Hope. It had been so long since I'd felt it that the sensation was like something living inside me, something wonderful waiting to break free, just like I was.”

“There is a magnificent intensity in life that comes when we are not in control but are only reacting, living, surviving. I am not a religious man per se...but for me, to go to sea is to get a glimpse of the face of God. At sea I am reminded of my insignificance-of all men's insignificance. It is a wonderful feeling to be so humbled.”

“Even though Mavis was my secret friend, she is the only one I hope I see again. She’s the only one I wonder about. I hope she wonders about me too.”

“I wondered at him, so wise and so foolish, to have lived with me all these months and not know that the worst storms break inside a man.”