“There were so many levels to the unknown, from safe to dangerous to outright nebulous, scariest of all.”

“There are so many laws that no one is safe from hanging.”

“As I look back on my own life, I recognize this simple truth: The greatest opportunities were the scariest lions. Part of me has wanted to play it safe, but I’ve learned that taking no risks is the greatest risk of all.”

“The only place outside Heaven where you can be perfectly safe from all the dangers and perturbations of love is Hell.”

“We referenced fictional characters as if they were people to learn from. As if real-life people were too nebulous, too private and unreal for us to understand.”

“During all the months when she had been absent, there were so many things I have saved up to tell her, so many bits of news about the house and the neighborhood and friends and work and family, but now they seemed inconsequential. Puny. Move far enough away from an event ans it sort of levels out, so to speak - settles into the general landscape.”