More on this book
Community
Kindle Notes & Highlights
I cried every night, feeling so sorry for myself for not being able to speak of my pain.
as she rubbed her dry eyes with her palms, that she was past the age for a reading marathon.
The books welcomed her back with open arms without judging the person she’d become, and accepted her for who she was.
When the man later walks out of her life, she stops making new memories, for fear of erasing him and their shared time. She disengages completely from the world, living out the remainder of her life in solitude, for decades, until the ripe old age of ninety, or one hundred.
Amy and Isabelle.
Is a good book always a good read?
When authors delve deep into their understanding of life to touch the hearts of readers, helping them to navigate life, isn’t that what a good book should be?
Reading makes you deviate further from the textbook definition of success because books don’t make us go ahead of or above anyone else; they guide us to stand alongside others.
To read is to see things from someone else’s perspective, and that naturally leads you to stop and look out for other people, rather than chase after success in the rat race. If more people read, I think the world would become a better place.
Books are not meant to remain in your mind, but in your heart. Maybe they exist in your mind too, but as something more than memories.
‘Those who can self-reflect are able to change a little just by reading one book. Even those who can’t – I believe that if they keep stimulating themselves by reading, one day, they’ll be able to reflect on themselves.’
‘Don’t you think there’ll be someone out there who knows how to love themself and yet not hurt others?’
‘You were the one who told me that characters in novels are a little imperfect and that’s how they lend their voice to the average person. Because we’re imperfect, we knock into each other, and hurt each other in the process. You’re just another ordinary person.’
‘I beg for the clockwork in this room to freeze, and for my breath to stop.’
The Guard of Light,
(Cho Hae-jin, The Guard of Light, Changbi, 2017, 27–28)
Neither did I want to be successful or famous. I just wanted a stable life.
Perhaps he was miserable precisely because he was trying to simplify a life that was meant to remain complex.
‘Dissonance before moments of harmony makes the harmony sound beautiful. Just as harmony and dissonance exist side by side in music, life is the same. Because harmony is preceded by dissonance, that’s why we think life is beautiful.’
‘Is there a way that will accurately tell us whether the current moment we’re living in is harmony or dissonance? How do I tell what state I’m in now?’
‘While writing, it’s possible to unintentionally include untruths.
‘I shouldn’t have gotten married. I shouldn’t have tied myself to that man and made him family. He was good as a lover. Or we could have just been acquaintances. He’s not someone I would want to live with, although I wouldn’t have known that before getting married.’
I’ve been thinking that what the government should do is not create more jobs, but to find a way for the citizens to make a living.’
‘It felt like growing up because I was doing things I had consciously chosen to do for the first time.’
To Have or To Be? which Frayne mentioned.
David Frayne, The Refusal of Work: The Theory and Practice of Resistance to Work
From his experience, once he started having doubts when asking a question, it was time to stop. Once he started wondering if the question was appropriate, it was a signal not to ask it. When he didn’t know what to say, it was time to listen.
Strange. As a reader, she could easily discern good writing from bad, even if it was a subjective judgement. But when it came to her own writing, she was completely at a loss.
Despite getting parched lips and puffy eyes, he doggedly held on to his job because he couldn’t quite let go. He was doing something he liked, how dare he give it up? Yet, he wasn’t happy. At the same time, he fretted about possibly living with regrets if he gave up what he liked.
‘Well, if you don’t know, just say so.’ ‘Is it okay not to have a definite conclusion?’
‘By forcing an answer, you risk closing your ears to what your heart is telling you, misinterpreting your feelings or worse, deceiving yourself. Write how you really feel. You’re thinking and fretting over it now, right? Say so. Or you can just whine about not having an answer; that’s also another solution. What you’re doing now is not just writing an essay. You’re carefully considering what you want to do in life. In that case, you shouldn’t rush into an answer.’
‘Sir, what should I do to “write properly”?
‘Didn’t I already tell you? Write honestly. Write with effort. With honesty, and sincerity. Then whatever comes out of it will be properly written.’
‘To adopt a mature attitude towards life is to know how to live in the moment.’
find your own walk, your own way of striving, pacing, direction. Anything you want!’
The busier I become, the more I revisit the past. I hated my life then, when everything was extremely hectic. I hated it so much that I abandoned everything and escaped. I left everything and everyone behind. I couldn’t bear living like that anymore, so I listened to my heart and threw everything away.’
‘Keeping silent can also be a form of lying. Sometimes, not saying anything makes no difference. But sometimes, it becomes a problem.’
I loved him. I definitely did, in my own way. But at some point in time, I started to put myself ahead of him. Instead of giving up my way of life to love him, I gave up on him to pursue my life. I put myself first, and I want to maintain the life I have now. I’m the kind of person who may throw someone away again for my own sake, for my own life.
Because it’s our first life, worries are aplenty, and anxiety, too. Because it’s our first life, it’s precious. Because it’s our first life, nobody knows what’ll happen even in five minutes.
‘A life surrounded by good people is a successful life. It might not be success as defined by society, but thanks to the people around you, each day is a successful day.’
Kent Haruf’s Our Souls at Night.
A day well spent is a life well lived.
