restraint equals indulgence

It is harrowing for me to try to teach 20-year-old students, who earnestly want to improve their writing. The best I can think to tell them is: Quit smoking, and observe posted speed limits. This will improve your odds of getting old enough to be wise

As a biologist, I can't think of myself as anything but an animal among animals and plant.

We're animals. We're born like every other mammal and we live our whole lives around disguised animal thoughts.

The truth needs so little rehearsal.

I can count all the ways in which being a mother has enriched my understanding of the world, of character, my sense of the future and my attachment to it. I can't imagine what kind of writer I'd be if I didn't have my kids.