Time's a funny thing, bending, warping, stretching, and compressing, all depending on perspective.

And you, Mom. I loved you. You've asked if i felt and understood that you loved me. of course I did. And you know this. I loved your love because it kept me safe and happy and wanted, and it existed beyond words and hugs and eyes.

I smile, loving him for changing with me, for going where my Neglect has taken us, for getting the new me.

But I am not what I say or what I do or what I remember. I am fundamentally more than that.

Everything she did and love, everything she was, required language.

... just because [butterflies'] lives were short didn't mean they were tragic... See, they have a beautiful life.

Alice: I miss myself. John: I miss you too, Ali, so much.

In the ladies' room, Alice studied her image in the mirror. The reflected older woman's face didn't quite match the picture that she had of herself in her mind's eye. p 35

Take what you've learned and love someone again. Find someone to love and love without condition. This is why we're all here.

You're so beautiful, said Alice. I'm afraid of looking at you and not knowing who you are. I think that even if you don't know who I am someday, you'll still know that I love you. What if I see you, and I don't know that you're my daughter, and I don't know that you love me? Then, I'll tell you that I do, and you'll believe me.

Don't aim for perfect. Aim for complete. Perfection is an unattainable illusion.

At some point, there would simply be no point.