“Whatever news we get about the scans, I’m not going to die when we hear it. Iwon’t die the next day, or the day after that, or the day after that. Sotoday, right now, well this is a wonderful day. And I want you to knowhow much I’m enjoying it.”I thought about that, and about Jai’s smile.I knew then. That’s the way the rest of my life would need to be lived.”

“I once had a dream about a woman, and the next day she died. I stopped sleeping for three days after that to try to save some lives, but then my body relented and I went back to being a murderer.”

“He lives for you, Laurel, and that's not some kind of figure of speech.He lives every day for you.Even after you moved to Crescent City,all he did every day was talk about you,worry about you, wonder what was happening, if he would ever see you again. And even what I told him I was sick of hearing about you, I could tell he was still thinking about you.Every moment of every day.”

“On my first day of kindergarten:"You thought it was hard? If kindergarten is busting your ass, I got some bad news for you about the rest of life.”

“I thought over and over about what I was going to do when Carly overdosed and died. How would we go on? And then I knew: I wouldn’t go on. And then I realized that it was just going to be too painful to actually have to watch her die. Right in front of me. My daughter was dying. That’s when I snapped.”

“You may be dying, but I’m going to have a picnic and enjoy this glorious day. I won’t let your impending death spoil my afternoon.”