We seem to believe it is possible to ward off death by following rules of good grooming.

The genius of the primitive mind is that it can render human helplessness in noble and beautiful ways.

When he died he would not end. The world would end.

And what's the point of waking up in the morning if you don't try to match the enormousness of the known forces in the world with something powerful in your own life?

We need time to lose interest in things.

In cities no one notices specific dying. Dying is a quality of the air. It's everywhere and nowhere.

That's what in theory differentiates a writer from everyone else. You see and hear more clearly.