"Friendship true is a vow of care.A warm embrace when in despair.A loving presence waiting thereto lift a heart, its burdens bear.Friendship true is an earnest prayer.A tongue of praise for one's welfare.A smile 'mid laughs as light as air,and thoughtfulness most kind and rare."

"Missing someone is the reverberating echo of everything beautiful about her-her laugh, her song, her touch, her smell, the power of her words, and the constant shadow that lingers on as her perfect image in your memory."

"Anyone who takes the time to attentively listen is either an old soul or a romantic one."

"If you couldn't sense heat, you'd not be alive. And if that heat never grew uncomfortable, you would never move. And if you were stagnant-unchallenged by unpredictable flares-you would never grow capable of shielding yourself from harsher flames. So yes, life was meant to drag you straight through the fire."

"You never step backwards when you're sure of where you're going."

"Gratitude is the real treasure God wants us to find, because it isn't the pot of gold but the rainbow that colors our world."

"When it comes to the crusty behavior of some people, give them the benefit of the doubt. They may be drowning right before your eyes, but you can't see it. And you would never ask someone to drown with a smile on his face."

"At the core of love is validation. It is what gives love power. For when love is given away, validation seeps in and expands in the heart of the recipient, filling up every empty, dark corner. It is a wonderful, light, consuming feeling we long for, and once found, we hope-even expect-it will forever remain. But there are times when that most precious love is revoked, and a hard scab forms over the empty hole. Though this scab is both healing and protective, it is the reason why validation from future love may not seep in so easily, no matter how wanting the heart."

"I wish everyone had someone who never popped their balloons."

"What's the point of changing who you are in order to impress a woman, when your intention is to return to who you were, a person she was never attracted to in the first place?"

"Every heart has a layer of sadness, whether deeply buried or covering the surface for all to see."

"Acknowledge that some moments are just plain awful-desperate and gloomy and painful and miserable and nothing at all but anguish. No truthful, cheerful thought in the world will fix it. So let me cry awhile. Don't try to find a sunbeam where a shroud of darkness encloses me. Let me mourn. Then, after the storm, when the tears have run dry and my eyes choose to open, I will look for your rainbow of hope."

"Write the ending first and then you'll know before the opening sentence that it's going to be a good book."

"Dare to forge your own path. Even rocks can roll."

"My life is a fairytale stuck at the climax."

"If only I could see myself from the same vantage point that I observe the world; I might judge my behavior and expressions more critically, and others less."

"You stand a better chance of bringing pretend to life through the power of belief than you stand any chance of erasing what's real by refusing to believe."

"Who told you it was too late? And more importantly, why did you choose to believe them?"

"I wish I could fly.I wish I were rich.I wish I had more time."But you can, and you are, and you do; I wish you would open your eyes."

"My shoulders, broad and sculpted thick, were designed for two useful purposes. The one, to carry heavy loads like cedar logs and beams of steel and now and then the careful transfer of an injured friend to a bed of safety. The other purpose I consider superior, and that is to be, in all circumstances and forever, your headrest and cry pillow whereupon you may leave your heaviest burdens."

"Maybe Christmas is more than a day to receive. Maybe Christmas, perhaps, is a day to believe."

"On Hallows Eve, we witches meetto broil and bubble tasty treatslike goblin thumbs with venom dip,crisp bat wings, and fried fingertips.We bake the loudest cackle crunch,and brew the thickest quagmire punch.Delicious are the rotting flieswhen sprinkled over spider pies.And, my oh my, the ogre brainsall scrambled up with wolf remains!But what I love the most, it's true,are festered boils mixed in stew.They cook up oh so tenderly.It goes quite well with mugwort tea.So, don't be shy; the cauldron's hot.Jump in! We witches eat a lot!"

"Knowing the path through the forest doesn't make the trip any less daunting. Knowing the steps to your dreams doesn't make the climb any less of a challenge."

"Laughter is magic that dispenses clouds and creates sunshine in the soul."

"Courage doesn't defeat fear or erase fear or adjust to fear. Courage acts, plain and simple, in the midst of fear."

"If all of our sins, bad habits, and poor choices were permanently inked into our skin like tattoos, we would all dress quite modestly."

"Twinkle tiny star.Oh, how great you truly are!God's sign from afar."

"There are in this world ample reasons to be sad and disheartened, discouraged and fearful. But there are as many reasons not to be."

"The spirit of Christmas exists in harmonious carols like those sung by angels on the day of Christ's birth."

"Kindness wields a sword of light against the darkness."

"Personal problems appear big because we press our nose to the glass to observe them. This only serves to magnify our troubles. The problems of others we tend to view at a reasonable distance from the window, making their woes and bothers appear ordinary. Too bad we don't naturally take a few steps back before considering our own plight."

"The greatest gift you can give is your time. Not money, not items, not food, not pretty cards with handwritten sentiment, but time. People need your presence. The way you can help a soul the most is to simply be there."

"Disappointment is really just a term for our refusal to look on the bright side."

"Never give up. It's like breathing-once you quit, your flame dies letting total darkness extinguish every last gasp of hope. You can't do that. You must continue taking in even the shallowest of breaths, continue putting forth even the smallest of efforts to sustain your dreams. Don't ever, ever, ever give up."

"Maybe love isn't meant to be bliss never-ending. Maybe love is unwavering support and befriending."

"Life can seem like a gloomy wait in the thick of black shadows.And still there are those who smile at the darkness, anticipating the beauty of an eventual sunrise."

"I had the most beautiful dream, and then I fell asleep in your arms and my dream turned lovelier still."

"There are tomorrows on their way worth the struggles of today. Never give up."

"Funny thing how when you reach out, people tend to reach right back. Best, then, to make sure your hand is open and not fisted."

"What I've learned about writing is that sometimes less is more, while often more is grander. And both are true."

"Life can be awful. Life can be ugly.And still there are those who smile at the darkness, anticipating the beauty of an eventual sunrise."

"If you think the most courageous and difficult thing you can do is stubbornly stand your ground, try graciously giving in."

"I drifted off after a while, staring at the only star visible through the thick covering of leaves. Hope seemed a futile wish, but I troubled the lonely star to grant it anyway."

"There is no poetry without want. Desperate want."

"Bad habits are demons that often push us into isolation because they know that in our loneliness they stand little chance of being overcome."

"Life is a valuable and unique opportunityto discover who you are.But it seems as soon as you nearanswering that age-old question,something unexpected always happensto alter your course.And who it is you thought you weresuddenly changes.Then comes the frustrating realizationthat no matter how long life endures,no matter how many experiencesare muddled through in this existence,you may never really be ableto answer the question....Who am I? Because the answer, like the seasons,constantly, subtly, inevitably changes.And who it is you are today,is not the same person you will be tomorrow."

"Boasting is one of those rare outfits that never looks good on you but makes you look stunning when modeled by your admirers."

"Life is a character-building opportunity that we all volunteered for."

"Forgiving yourself can prove as difficult as licking a scab off your elbow."

"Life is a bonfire where everyone else has brought marshmallows, and you-a stick."