“Dear God, I prayed, all unafraid(as we're inclined to do),I do not need a handsome manbut let him be like You;I do not need one big and strongnor yet so very tall,nor need he be some genius,or wealthy, Lord, at all;but let his head be high, dear God,and let his eye be clear,his shoulders straight, whate'er his state,whate'er his earthly sphere;and let his face have character,a ruggedness if soul,and let his whole life show, dear God,a singleness of goal;then when he comes(as he will come)with quiet eyes aglow,I'll understand that he's the manI prayed for long ago.”

“If I marry: He must be so tall that when he is on his knees, as one has said he reaches all the way to heaven. His shoulders must be broad enough to bear the burden of a family. His lips must be strong enough to smile, firm enough to say no, and tender enough to kiss. Love must be so deep that it takes its stand in Christ and so wide that it takes the whole lost world in. He must be active enough to save souls. He must be big enough to be gentle and great enough to be thoughtful. His arms must be strong enough to carry a little child.”

“Down through the years, I turned to the Bible and found in it all that I needed”

“Megan had accustomed herself to receiving the third degree about her dates. His name is Dillon Carver.He's the same age as me, and also a senior. He has no family history of insanity or premature baldness. He doesn't smoke, drink or do drugs, but he does have a vicious Dr Pepper habit. I'll let you know how big his penis is after the dance.”

“To shame our sins He blushed in blood;He closed His eyes to show us God;Let all the world fall down and knowThat none but God such love can show”

“If ever the day comes when he wakes beside me and my name doesn't come to his lips, when that bewildered look in his eyes doesn't fade away, I'll remember for us both. I won't let him forget the life we built together. I won't let him go.”

“Then come here," he said, a bit redundantly, as he had already pulled her with him into an armchair and curled her up in his arms. "Tell me what I can do to help you feel better."Fire looked into his quiet eyes, touched his dear, familiar face, and considered the question. Well. I always like when you kiss me."Do you?"You're good at it."Well," he said. "That's lucky, because I'll always be kissing you.”