"Writing is the only thing I've ever done with persistence, except for being married."

"Married life requires shared mystery even when all the facts are known."

"Fear and hope are alike underneath."

"It's interesting to leave a place, interesting even to think about it. Leaving reminds us of what we can part with and what we can't, then offers us something new to look forward to, to dream about."

"There's a lot to be said for doing what you're not supposed to do, and the rewards of doing what you're supposed to do are more subtle and take longer to become apparent, which maybe makes it less attractive. But your life is the blueprint you make after the building is built."