From A to X Quotes

“At some point when tending someone you love who is in pain, you reach the edge of a lake, and you look at each other with such joy at the stillness. [Letter unsent]”
― John Berger, From A to X: A Story in Letters

“I've learnt something more. The expectation of a body can last as long as any hope. Like mine expecting yours. As soon as they gave you two life sentences, I stopped believing in their time.”
― John Berger, From A to X: A Story in Letters

“No place for illusions here. The beat doesn't stop solitude, it doesn't cure pain, you can't telephone it - it's simply a reminder that you belong to a shared story.”
― John Berger, From A to X: A Story in Letters

“آمل ألاّ انجب أبدا. إنها القسوة بعينها أن نأتي بروح أخرى إلى هذا العالم.”
― John Berger, From A to X: A Story in Letters

“لا يكتب أي شاعر أكثر من قصيدة واحدة. قصيدة تمتد مسافة العمر كله، وقد يظن أنه يكتب قصائد قصيرة مختلفة. لكن في الحقيقة إنها جميعاً أجزاءٌ من القصيدة الطويلة ذاتها.”
― John Berger, From A to X: A Story in Letters

“الأشياء الصغيرة هي التي تخيفنا، و الأشياء الضخمة التي بإمكانها أن تقتل هي التي تمنحنا الشجاعة.”
― John Berger, From A to X: A Story in Letters

“الماضي هو الزمن الوحيد الذي لسنا سجناء له. يمكننا تغيير الماضي تماماً كما نرغب. ما لا يمكننا القيام به هو تغيير نتائجه.”
― John Berger, From A to X: A Story in Letters

“They can't foresee what we intend to do next. This is why they lose their nerve. They can't cross the zone of silence they herd us into. A zone bordered on their side by the distant din of their false accusations, and on our side by our silent final intentions.”
― John Berger, From A to X: A Story in Letters

“سأقرأ بعض الأسطر من دون ترجمتها. ستسمعين السّر، وسيبقى السّر سرّاً.”
― John Berger, From A to X: A Story in Letters

“The single word that counted on Wednesday was the one that came from the muzzle of a gun, addressed to somebody on their knees. Better to choose our hour than to accept this. We know each other. We've known each other from the time of Crocodilopolis. [Letter unsent]”
― John Berger, From A to X: A Story in Letters

“It's the lies we tell ourselves that make us repetitive.”
― John Berger, From A to X: A Story in Letters

“Los tangos están hechos por pedazos de vida que han sobrevivido por casualidad”
― John Berger, From A to X: A Story in Letters

“En cuanto una habitación es habitada por una mujer, su techo se curva. ¿No te has dado cuenta? Si la mujer es desdichada en esa habitación, el techo cae como una manga rota.”
― John Berger, From A to X: A Story in Letters

“Se oyeron disparos en la calle mayor. A ver así, susurraste. Y de pronto comprendí que en las máquinas que fabrican los hombres hay unos circuitos de ingenio que se pueden compartir, que unas mentes comparten con otras. Igual que se comparte la poesía. Lo vi en el dorso de tus manos. Ninguna palabra me ha tranquilizado tanto como lo hicieron tus manos en ese momento. Oímos las órdenes que voceaban por el megáfono abajo en la calle. Alzaste la vista y me miraste, asentiste y entonces me hiciste un guiño con uno de tus ojos doloridos.”
― John Berger, From A to X: A Story in Letters