“And my grandfather... was forever knocked into that middle place, unable to worship a God in whose existence he could not wholly disbelieve. Permanent alteration: a hole.”

“The moment that followed was one that would forever change the course of her life. She reflected on it later, and wondered how such a short matter of seconds could alter so permanently every part of her existence. Like an unstoppable line of dominoes, the moment was the flick that set everything into motion.”

“In contrast, the a/theistic approach can be seen as a form of disbelieving what one believes, or rather, believing in God while remaining dubious concerning what one believes about God (a distinction that fundamentalism is unable to maintain).”

“a kind of emptiness existed in the center of my bagel; really it was just the hole that's in the middle of all bagels; 'i need to go read my blog to find out what my politics are”

“To love human beauty is to love something whose very existence is doomed. Love should be based on permanence. On solid, secure things.....Love of God. Love of good deeds. Love of country and family. Love of ideas.”

“So that means you are almost old enough to be my grandfather." Raj laughed, Your great, great, grandfather, more likely, but whose counting?”