“People ask me what I do in winter when there's no baseball. I'll tell you what I do. I stare out the window and wait for spring.”

“I meet the answering machine’s small, steady stare. “What do you do when God tells you no?” I ask. But it doesn’t answer me, so I undress for bed”

“It wasn't until after we were pulling into the back lot of Station One that I remembered asking Hank if he wanted to have coffee and talk.Crap.I slid a quick glance his way to find him staring out the window. His expression reminded me of a conversation I had with Emma when she was six years old and I found her sitting with her knees drawn up on the back of the couch, staring out the window."Hey, kiddo, what's wrong?""I'm looking out the window.""Why?""Because that's what people do when they're sad. They stare out the window.”

“If you ask me what I came into this life to do, I will tell you: I came to live out loud.”

“It’s a family joke that when I was a tiny child I turned from the window out of which I was watching a snowstorm, and hopefully asked, "Momma, do we believe in winter?”

“I have no way to ask about that. I have no elegant way of stepping into your heart to ask about that without tracking in filth. So I will wait, someday, when you want to tell me.. tell me then. I'll wait until then.”