There was no way of knowing anything, he knew, not even that there was no way of knowing anything. - Joseph Heller

Now THERE'S a hollow state to be in, isn't it — to believe in God and get no sign that He's there.

There’s a big cocktail party on Martha’s Vineyard. Someone comes up to this writer, I think it’s Joseph Heller, and says, “Joe, see that guy over there? He’s a hedge fund manager, and he made more money yesterday than you made on all the books you have ever published.” Heller looks over, pauses, and says, “Yeah, but I have something he’ll never have: enough.”

The end result of experiencing terror and injury is not an increase in compassion, but a tendency toward callousness.