Couldn't the wrong sort of living turn anyone mean? I remembered very well that one day back in Yoroido, a boy pushed me into a thorn bush near the pond. By the time I clawed my way out I was mad enough to bite through wood. If a few minutes of suffering could make me so angry, what would years of it do? Even stone can be worn down with enough rain.
Arthur GoldenI stumbled out into the courtyard to try to flee my misery, but of course we can never flee the misery that is within us.
Arthur GoldenAnd then I became aware of all the magnificent silk wrapped around my body, and had the feeling I might drown in beauty. At that moment, beauty itself struck me as a kind of painful melancholy.
Arthur GoldenCan't you see? Every step I have taken, since I was that child on the bridge, has been to bring myself closer to you.
Arthur GoldenHis face was very heavily creased, and into each crease he had tucked some worry or other, so that it wasn't really his face any longer, but more like a tree that had nests of birds in all of the branches. He had to struggle constantly to manage it and always looked worn out from the effort.
Arthur Golden