My Precious, my Precious.

Most English-speaking people, for instance, will admit that cellar door is 'beautiful', especially if dissociated from its sense (and its spelling). More beautiful than, say, sky, and far more beautiful than beautiful. Well then, in Welsh for me cellar doors are extraordinarily frequent.

I cordially dislike allegory in all its manifestations, and always have done since I grew old and wary enough to detect its presence.

Dead men are not friends to living men, and give them no gifts. (Ghan-buri-Ghan, of allies during war)

Handsome is as handsome does

When he heard there was nothing to eat, he sat down and wept… “Why did I ever wake up!” he cried.

Kings built tombs more splendid than the houses of the living and counted the names of their descent dearer than the names of their sons. Childless lords sat in aged halls musing on heraldry or in high cold towers asking questions of the stars. And so the kingdom of Gondor sank into ruin, the line of kings failed, the white tree withered and the rule of Gondor was given over to lesser men.