May 2011
“Written in ink, in German, in a small, hopelessly sincere handwriting, were the words ‘Dear God, life is hell.’ Nothing led up to or away from it. Alone on the page, and in the sickly stillness of the room, the words appeared to have the stature of an uncontestable, even classic indictment. X stared at the page for several minutes, trying, against heavy odds, not to be taken in. Then, with far more zeal than he had done anything in weeks, he picked up a pencil stub and wrote down under the inscription, in English, ‘Fathers and teachers, I ponder, “What is Hell?” I maintain that it is the suffering of being unable to love.’”
—J.D. Salinger, from For Esme, With Love and Squalor (enchanting)
Night
“Caress the night’s horizon, look for the heart of jet that the
dawn covers over with flesh. It would put into your eyes innocent
thoughts, flames, wings, and greenery that the sun did not invent.
It isn’t the night you are missing, but its power.” - Paul Eluard
