"I wanted to write literature that pushed people into their lives rather than helping people escape from them."

“I am in a constant state of surprise these days. Actually, now that I calculate, I've been betrothed only one full day, but it seems like my whole life has come into being in the last twenty-four hours. Think of it! We could have gone on longing for one another and pretending not to notice forever. This obsession with dignity can ruin your life if you let it”

Source : Mary Ann Shaffer, Annie Barrows (2009). “The Guernsey Literary and Potato Peel Pie Society”, p.219, A&C Black

“Enlightenment is beyond self-improvement and spiritual seeking. It is the final resolution of a case of mistaken identity. It is the direct recognition of your eternal nature and the seeing through of who you have falsely believed yourself to be.”

“Oh, may your silhouette never dissolve on the beach; may your eyelids never flutter into the empty distance. Don't leave me for a second, my dearest.”

“I have always been an impassioned advocate for the works of Shakespeare. I regard him as one of the most complete miracles of his or any other age.”

“Our lives are filled with meeting wonderful people. Make sure those that have become a part of your life hear your words of appreciation.”

“Zen is the way of complete self-realization; a living human being who follows the way of Zen can attain satori and then live a new life as a Buddha.”

Source : Zenkei Shibayama (2012). “A Flower Does Not Talk: Zen Essays”, p.19, Tuttle Publishing

“Ranchers need clean water for their stock, farmers need it for their crops, every employer needs it to stay in business, and every living thing needs it for life... The law needs to be clear to protect water quality and the rights of landowners.”

“Those smutty books sell because women wish their husbands had half the balls the men in those books do.”