We are anxious in the face of our unchangeable past; we long to recreate segments of our private histories, but we are stuck with them.

Forgiving does not erase the bitter past. A healed memory is not a deleted memory. Instead, forgiving what we cannot forget creates a new way to remember. We change the memory of our past into a hope for our future.

Jesus said that we should render to the state what properly belongs to the state, and though he had taxes in mind, we might reasonably infer that giving the state the job of punishing wrongdoers is one way of giving the state its due.

Sometimes I like to list the strongest arguments I can find to support a point of view I think is wrong. When I have them before me, I am up against a real opponent rather than a hypothetical one that is an easy target for me to hit.

I have a couple of best friends, and I don't think I would live with them. It definitely... certain people can't live together, and I think that it could potentially put a lot of strain on the relationship or friendship.

Black people shouldn't have permanent friends or enemies: they should have permanent interest.

There is nothing like mortal fear to galvanize a friendship.

People ordinarily don't think of their orchestras as important as we'd like them to be. People don't care about their friends and neighbors who sit down to commit excellence three or four times a year, but they will go see the tall bald guy with three names from television.