“Death isn't enough. It doesn't remove the stain. But a slap, a whiplash, square on the face, does. Because a man's face is as sacred as his mother or his wife.”

“A man who loves his mother too much is someone who can never love his wife enough.”

“His face just looks like one of those long, narrow stones in the graveyard, doesn't it? 'Sacred to the memory' ought to be written on his forehead.”

“Why not? For your information I'm hoping it doesn't last more than a month or two myself.?His words stung as sharply as a slap across the face."Maybe by that time you'll be miserable enough to be willing to marry me-”

“If a man confessed anything on his death bed, it was the truth; for no man could stare death in the face and lie.”

“My mother moves so fast I do not even see it coming. But she slaps my face hard enough to make my head snap backward. She leaves a print that stains me long after it’s faded. Just so you know: shame is five-fingered.”