A speech is something you say so as to distract attention from what you do not say. — William Stafford
‘Be alive,’ the land says, ‘listen – this is your time, your world, your pleasure.’ — William Stafford
You can treat experience as a set of surprises on which to exercise your quirky self. — William Stafford
The signals we give-yes or no, or maybe-/should be clear/the darkness around us is deep. — William Stafford
What you have to do as a writer is . . . write day in and day out no matter what happens. — William Stafford
I just kept on doing what everyone starts out doing. The real question is, why did other people stop? — William Stafford