“They speak their loud dialects, / Sicilians, Sardinians, / Calabrians, / they all have their own taverns. / At the other end of the alley, / on the other side / a quiet spot, / waiters and patrons at tables, / their faces, hairdos / out of Pompeii's frescoes. / Large eyes look at us, / the door does not open out, / it opens in.”

“Doors are opening now that were not open in the past, and the great challenge facing minority groups is to be ready to enter these doors as they open. No greater tragedy could befall us at this hour but that of allowing new opportunities to emerge with out the concomitant preparedness to meet them.”

“Elizabeth's voice had a door in it. When you opened that door you found another door, and that door opened yet another door. All the doors were nice and led out of her.”

“Yeah, I said, swallowing and looking out my open door, at the ocean. The answer's yes.”

“And after we have shown each other how we have set and kept the clear, healthy boundaries that help us live side by side with each other, let us risk remembering that we never stop silently loving those we once loved out loud.”

“Education opens the way to a new life and a new world. Be brave and confident. Open all doors through knowledge, open with your willpower and the impulse of your hearts, diligence, helping each other, trusting each other, learning from each other.”

“Before pointing the finger to point out the rottenness and disgrace of others, it is better for us to look first in the mirror to see our own face.”

“Some drivers have already got out of their cars, prepared to push the stranded vehicle to a spot where it will not hold up the traffic, they beat furiously on the closed windows, the man inside turns his head in their direction, first to one side then to the other, he is clearly shouting something, to judge by the movements of his mouth he appears to be repeating some words, no one word but three, as turns out to be the case when someone finally manages to open the door, I am blind.”

“Don't simply knock and wait for the door to be opened. Go look for the keys. Some fit the lock better than others.”

“To prejudge other men's notions before we have looked into them is not to show their darkness but to put out our own eyes.”