I didn't lead a very wise life, myself, but it was a full one and a grown-up one. You come of age very quickly through shipwreck and disaster.

There is no fence nor hedge round time that is gone. You can go back and have what you like of it if you can remember.

Maturity is immaturity, grown up.

Sewage can lead to another disaster, which is disease.

Some say you become wise with age. No. You become OLD with age, you become wise with experiences. There's a difference.

Sometimes I think I might not have written 'The Age of Miracles' if I hadn't grown up in California, if I hadn't been exposed to its very particular blend of beauty and disaster, of danger and denial.